Lost in Time: All Gods Village
by lantern of hope
Summary: Ryokan Kurosawa struggles to keep the village safe and perform his duties as Ceremony Master. The question is, how much can he really do in a world constantly changing around him? Slight AU. Slight crossover with other Fatal Frame games. STORY IS FINALLY COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1: The Two Families

Hello readers. Just so you all know, from this point, Chapters 1-6 have been given _minor_ edits.

This is the story of All Gods; a comprehensive story of the village from beginning to end, with Ryokan Kurosawa (the Ceremony Master) as the major character. The stories of Yae, Sae, Itsuki, and others are explored as well.

Also, I think I should mention that this story is no longer my "brainstorm" for another story. That "other story" has since been scrapped, so that I could focus on this one. I've got other ideas for future fanfics instead.

I hope you all enjoy this story.

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Chapter 1: The Two Families

It had all started with the Tsuchihara family. Before All Gods, the Tsuchiharas were wealthy and influential, but not terribly special.

However, one day, their household was approached by a lone man and his small family. They weren't wealthy, but the family master, Mr. Kurosawa, had a silver tongue. He spoke as if he were familiar with the customs and courtesies of the upper rungs of society, and he looked...odd somehow. So he was able to convince the Tsuchihara family to hear what he had to say.

He told the family an odd tale, the tale of what would come to be known as the Hellish Abyss, and that he had the religious knowledge necessary to keep it at bay with rituals and sacrifices. The Tsuchiharas were enthralled, but wondered why he needed their help. Kurosawa responded by stating that he needed the power and influence of their family to gather followers and establish a village, that would act as a shield to keep curious eyes away. This would be their sole purpose, for all time.

But some of the Tsuchiharas were not convinced, skeptical of the man's wild claims. So Kurosawa offered to prove his point, and he led the doubters to the pit. At the time, it was uncovered and unprotected, save for the natural cavern it lay within, and the land around its surface was fallow and rotten.

To prove the truth of his claim, Kurosawa made the ultimate sacrifice. He turned to the Tsuchiharas, and asked them to observe his son closely, indicating the first born in his family. They looked into his eyes, which were full of vitality. The son had sharp vision.

Kurosawa then explained that his son would gaze into the pit. If his words were lies, and the abyss wasn't what he claimed it was, then his son would have nothing to fear from a simple glance.

The young man looked into the pit, and let out a scream the shattered the air around them. When he got back on his feet and opened his eyes, the Tsuchiharas crowded around him to look, and saw with horror that his irises and pupils had vanished, replaced with nothing but endless white.

The son was completely blind.

The suffering of the son, which convinced the Tsuchiharas to accept Mr. Kurosawa's offer, became the first partial sacrifice to please the pit, and the son himself became the first mourner.

And so it was that All Gods was born. The two families worked together to gather followers, convincing them to accept lives of hardship. The Tsuchiharas sold their old home and spent virtually all their family's savings to establish the new village. They built the homes of their family, and that of Kurosawa, which grew over time, and turned the natural cavern into a patchwork of tunnels, with the abyss at its deepest point. The common villagers lived in much simpler homes, located outside of central All Gods. Oddly enough, the main Tsuchihara household was located not far from the villagers homes, as the Tsuchiharas had taken the responsibility of enforcing law in the village, and opted to be close to the people they'd be observing, though the family maintained a few small buildings in central All Gods, including their jailhouse.

The Kurosawas, on the other hand, established themselves as the spiritual law of All Gods. They were the ones familiar with, and charged with, developing the rituals of the village. Their family was highly taciturn, never passing the innermost secrets of the rituals on, even to the Tsuchiharas. The Kurosawa family master was even more secretive, keeping secrets that were never shared with _anyone_, except for the elder son (who would become the next ceremony master). Violation of this secrecy was met with cruel retribution.

Soon, a series of arranged marriages between the sons and daughters of the Kurosawa and Tsuchihara families established a middle-upper class of families that would adopt their own names and change over time, coming to be known in the end as the Osaka, Kiryu, and Tachibana families. The rituals developed as well, and the village developed around them as the sacrifices piled up. Decades became centuries, and eventually All Gods distant past faded to memory, and then to history.

But all was not well. By the time the early 1800's had rolled around, the Tsuchiharas were becoming disgruntled. They, despite being the ones who founded All Gods, had found themselves playing second best to the Kurosawas.

But that wasn't why they were upset, as they understood the reason behind Kurosawa's status as the undisputed ruler of All Gods. They were the spiritual authority of the village. To the villagers, their voice was the voice of the kami; this gave them their power. Also, as odd as it was, the ceremony master was actually so vital to the rituals, that it had become apparent over time that they would always fail if the ceremony master himself were not present. No one knew why; it was one of the secrets the Kurosawa masters kept between father and son.

No - the Tsuchiharas were bitter for another reason. After providing the last shrine maidens, the Tsuchihara family was growing weary of the endless practice of bleeding for the pleasure of the pit. They had come to regret the actions and choices of their past ancestors, feeling shamed for letting the first Kurosawa to win them over. The family master, Eichiro Tsuchihara, became so bitter, he burned his own family altar; a rancorous and ominous act that he would come to pay for.

Despite the brutality of his actions, all of Eichiro's family members expressed the same strong feelings that the old rituals needed to be laid to rest, except one. Yuzuki Tsuchihara, Eichiro's beloved wife, was unsure if her family should be stirring up trouble, and begged her husband to consult with the current Ceremony Master, Sengoku Kurosawa, and work out their problems to avoid bloodshed.

He agreed, but the talks between the two men went nowhere. Sengoku, furious at the lack of the Tsuchihara's loyalty, reminded Eichiro of why they continued to offer their blood, and gave him a choice: continue to serve the gods, or meet those gods immediately.

The offer didn't seem unfair to Sengoku. After all, some day his own son, Ryokan, would carry out the ritual like all the others, and he had no problem with it, so why should the Tsuchiharas? It was called the _endless ceremony_ for a reason.

Everyone lived for it.

Everyone died for it.

That was the end of peace. Eichiro made plans to sabotage the sacrificial chambers of All Gods and convince its people to abandon their cause, but Sengoku and his family acted first, making plans to carry out the most draconian punishment on the Tsuchiharas possible. However, touched by a sliver of compassion for the only Tsuchihara member still loyal, Sengoku convinced his wife to invite Yuzuki to have a formal get together with her, so that the woman could be kept safe from the coming abhorrence that would befall the rest of her family.

Once the women were socializing in the Kiryu house, Sengoku put his plan into action. Gathering the veiled priests (those not from the Tsuchihara house, anyway) and peasant villagers, and donning a suit of armor and a sword himself, the "spiritual voice" of All Gods spun an intricate lie of how the Tsuchiharas had sinned and become corrupted by the Hellish Abyss. The villagers, for lack of an ability to think for themselves, believed him, and the veiled priests, knowing that he was lying through his teeth, still weren't willing to defend the doomed family, for fear of sharing their fate.

The villagers marched on the Tsuchihara house with pitchforks and torches in hand. Cries of rage and agony rang out and reverberated through the house's halls as the Tsuchiharas fought a losing battle to stay alive. Suffering no delusions of mercy, the mob washed away anything that stood in its path. The battle finally ended when Eichiro was beheaded by Sengoku.

It seemed as if Eichiro's hasty actions had come back to haunt him, as well as the rest of his family.

As the crowd sobered and then dissipated, Sengoku looked around the room, admiring the results of his plan. But he didn't stay long, as he realized that there was one more loose end to tie. As he departed the burning manor, heading for the Kiryu house, Sengoku hoped that she had not heard the cries of her family.

The two houses were far apart, enough so that Yuzuki was blissfully unaware of any ill-doing, happily conversing with the women of the other upper class families.

Of course, that changed when the doors of the sitting room swung open, and Sengoku appeared, flanked by veiled priests. Looking around, Yuzuki saw the expressions all around her beginning to change, as the women she had been happily talking with were now grim and pensive. Something... was horribly wrong.

Choosing a direct approach, Sengoku admitted to everything he had done. As he told Yuzuki of her family's fate, the other women held her arms, trying in vain to comfort her. Sengoku, trying to ignore Yuzuki's tears, tried to appeal to what he considered to be her common sense, reminding her of how she had initially been against her husband's decision to "betray the village", and encouraged her to leave them behind. He would forget that she had been a member of their family, and take her in.

Sengoku Kurosawa stood calmly, sure that the women would accept his offer.

But, as awkward moments of silence began to tick by, it became clear to even the least sensible observers that the Tsuchihara woman's blood was beginning to boil, her sorrow quickly converting to raw rage as images of every cherished-every _murdered_-family member began to flood her fractured mind. Fearing what was about to happen, the hold that the other women had around Yuzuki tightened, their comforting gesture now forceful.

Yuzuki would not give Sengoku an answer, not a worded one anyway. No - her actions would speak for her, as well as for every innocent face that had been dispatched as a result of his barbarism. Drawing strength from the memory of her departed family, Yuzuki snapped herself away from the grip of her former friends, and tore a hairpin from her head, causing her long hair to cascade down around her. With an almost primal roar, Yuzuki charged forward and drove the sharp tip of the hairpin deep into Sengoku's chest. Before the crowd could react, Yuzuki barreled past the veiled priests, making a mad dash for the house's exit.

Sengoku, glancing down at his punctured frame, looked up and bellowed out his orders for them to disregard him, and give chase. As the veiled priests departed without question, the women of the other families came closer to inspect the wound. Sengoku brushed their concern off; the wound was small. He left the house and departed to Kurosawa manor in search of medicine, confident that nothing would come of his injury.

How wrong he was. Sengoku was ignorant of the fact that Yuzuki had, through a stroke of sheer luck, severed one of his major arteries. As he continued to walk back to Kurosawa manor, the mortally wounded man was being stalked by death itself.

Yuzuki, in the meantime, continued her attempted escape from the living nightmare that the village had become. But the main entrance of the Kiryu house was blocked by villagers, who were waiting outside. Eventually, the desperate woman found herself cornered on the heaven bridge-a long, thin bridge that connected the Kiryu and Tachibana houses.

As Yuzuki was approached from both sides by the enraged priests, she glanced over the edge of the bridge and, in the final moments that she had to think, decided that she would not give the priests the pleasure of dispatching her. In one clean motion, she leapt over the edge, calm in the assurance that she would soon be with her family again.

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Reviews will be appreciated. Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2: New Order

Chapter 2: New Order

Yuzuki's death seemed to have ended the violence and bloodshed in All Gods. The Veiled Priests buried the remains of the Tsuchihara members, Yuzuki included, in an unmarked mass grave near the village's river.

It was said in All Gods that the river's waters ran red for days after the incident. Another story quickly spawned that a few villagers had seen Yuzuki up near the village's cemetery, haunting the Tsuchihara gravestone where she should have been rightfully laid to rest.

The stories, when he heard them, didn't phase Sengoku in the slightest. Despite feeling drowsy, he was ultimately confident that he had restored order to All Gods, averting what he considered to be a possible disaster. At least until the next day came...

As he awoke that morning, hopeful that he would be able to leave the past behind, Sengoku found with a start that he couldn't summon the strength to so much as get out of bed. Shuddering, he also noticed that he felt very faint, and his chest, at its center, was extremely sore.

Too weak to call for help, Sengoku's condition went unnoticed until Ryokan came to him, wondering why he hadn't awoken yet. Not waiting for his father to speak, Ryokan recognized trouble and removed his father's robes until they could both see Sengoku's bare chest. The moment he laid his weary eyes on the red spots, all results of internal bleeding that had gone unchecked for a full night, Sengoku understood that the seeds of hatred which he had sown had come back to haunt him as a stroke of Yuzuki's arm. The stroke that would soon succeed in tearing him and his son apart.

But Sengoku literally could not die, not yet anyway. He was the village's current Ceremony Master, while his son was destined to be the next remaining twin in the endless ceremony and, after that phase of his life was complete, the new Ceremony Master.

Ryokan couldn't be both at once, and Sengoku knew full well that he had to be present and alive at the ritual's proceedings for it to succeed. He had to survive a little longer, so that the ritual could take place, lest they leave the fate of All Gods to chance. After that, Ryokan would simply have to accept the supreme authority that came with being the master of the Kurosawa house, his young age be damned.

So Sengoku summoned his priests, and delivered his shocking orders. The next ritual, for which preparations usually began weeks in advance, would have to be carried out that very day.

By some turn of fortune, the ritual succeeded mere moments before Sengoku finally succumbed to his injury. Ryokan carried out his duty and sacrificed his beloved brother to the deity that lay within the Abyss, and thereafter became the next Ceremony Master, succeeding his father's throne at the young age of thirteen.

What would become apparent over the next few years, however, was that Ryokan, who had watched his father die because of a family of traitors, had been mentally, and permanently, scarred by the same action that had physically scarred his father. As he struggled through his teenage years as the single individual charged with leading All Gods village, Ryokan Kurosawa's mind began to unravel. Although he kept his thoughts perfectly masked when in the company of others, he was slowly losing his grip on reality, becoming convinced that there were still more traitors within All Gods' borders. Ones that he had to stop.

So, without so much as a second thought, Ryokan callously set about the task of tightening his authority over All Gods and its people. Under him, the ability to talk freely became so constricted that the words "Hellish Abyss" became illegal to speak or write, being instead replaced by a star symbol (*) in any book that mentioned it.

The new laws that seemed to cast new darkness over All Gods' future assured that the village would never run short of mourners again, who were easily replaced by condemning the "sinners" of the village to serve among them.

The only person with dissenting thoughts on All Gods' traditions that Ryokan ever went without punishing was the family master of the Kiryu household, Yoshitatsu. Though they weren't fond of each other anymore, Ryokan had previously looked up to Yoshitatsu, almost as a second father. Though less than sane, he still felt compelled not to act against a former friend, provided that he kept his objections to himself.

Akane and Azami Kiryu, both young girls, were chosen to be the next victims when the time for another sacrifice came. Yoshitatsu, the father of the two girls, let them go without a fight, and the ritual succeeded, with Azami being sacrificed and Akane becoming a remaining twin.

Ryokan breathed easily when the first crimson sacrifice ritual that he was in charge of succeeded. He slept well that night, content that another protective spirit was guarding his village. And there would be another successful ritual within the next decade...

...or so he thought.


	3. Chapter 3: The Girl and the Doll

Forgot to include my disclaimer: As this is a work of fan fiction, the characters and settings of Fatal Frame are still under their original copyrights. I make no claim to them.

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Chapter 3: The Girl and the Doll

Akane Kiryu, like so many other remaining twins, wasn't the same person she had been when she returned home to her father. As she became more and more depressed and withdrawn, to the point that she wouldn't so much as utter a word to anyone around her, Yoshitatsu likewise became increasingly desperate to find a way to ease her pain.

Fortunately, he was in a position to do just that. Yoshitatsu specialized in doll making, and had an innate knowledge of western mechanics. Eventually, he reached the conclusion that the best, and only way to cheer Akane up, would be to construct a life-sized replica, a doll, of Azami.

Initially, his idea seemed to work marvelously. Akane and the Azami doll quickly became inseparable, and Akane cheered up. Told about it, even Ryokan liked the idea. The villagers of All Gods would be less likely to step out of line if they didn't have to feel too guilty about their actions, and that state of mind could be achieved if the remaining twins were to live their lives happily.

But Ryokan's glee faded away into feelings of unease when he received a visitor one fateful night. He had been meeting with the some of the veiled priests that were closest to him, when another priest joined them in the great hall. When he came stumbling into the room, tripping haphazardly over his own robes in evident panic, Ryokan knew immediately that something was wrong.

When asked, the panicking priest, who had come from the Kiryu household, blurted out a brief recount of what he had just seen. Ryokan looked on, feeling panicked himself, as the priest told him an almost impossible sounding story of how the seemingly harmless "Azami" doll had become possessed by macabre forces and ultimately taken control of Akane's soul and body. The priest had returned to the Kiryu house to find an already dead Yoshitatsu, with the hands of Akane and the doll wrapped around his throat. It didn't take the "reunited" twins long to turn on the priest himself; he had barely escaped with his life, and come in search of help.

Overcoming his fears quickly, Ryokan walked over to a wall, where a sword was mounted on a plaque. It was his father's sword, and he would put it to use wherever he saw the chance. Rallying the other priests, Ryokan led them into the Kiryu house, where they quickly overwhelmed and restrained the Azami doll. As the priests went looking for Akane, a hollow and maniacal laugh began to emanate from the mouth of the doll. The voice that croaked out wasn't Azami's; it was malevolent and inhuman. When the priests finally found Akane, her frail body stuffed into a closet, they knew why the spirit of the doll was so gleeful.

They had been too late. Akane, the latest remaining twin of All Gods, was dead.

Ryokan never got to use his sword, as he happened to chance upon some notes left behind by his late friend. They were instructions detailing how to destroy the doll that he had created. Deciding that it would be best if Akane's body were disposed of in the same manner as the doll's, Akane and the Azami doll that she had literally sold her soul for were hung from the house's rafters and cast into the Hellish Abyss without fanfare or concern.

A decade passed in relative peace, until the time eventually came that the next crimson sacrifice was needed. The Kiryu family had waned since the loss of its twins and family master ten years ago, and few of its members persisted in life. Still, the Kiryu house was important for being one of the places in which the twin children destined to take part in the sacrifice would stay, in their final days together.

A couple of days before the sacrifice was meant to occur, two twin girls of sixteen years, belonging to the Osaka family, had been left almost alone in the Kiryu house to reflect on what they would soon take part in, with only one member of the Kiryu family to share the house with them. The other Kiryus were scattered in various parts of the village.

Ryokan, actually taking time to relax in his manor's courtyard for once, knew that this sacrifice would succeed, just like the last one. He had made a point of talking to the two Osaka girls personally, and they were both willing and able to carry out their sacred duty. Only a couple of days separated him from success.

Perfect...

Until a shrill scream tore through the skies, reverberating off of the gate to Kurosawa manor. He heard it barely, but from the air of dread that Ryokan now felt, it may as well have emanated from right next to him. The scream, it seemed, had come from the Kiryu house.

Running toward the source of the blood curdling scream, Ryokan tore off his robe so that he could quicken his pace. As he bolted across the bridge that lead away from his house, two more screams joined the first one, coming from the same source and sounding no less horrible.

When he finally arrived at the entrance to the Kiryu house, a small crowd of curious villagers had gathered at the doors. A few priests that had been standing guard in the village had already acted, some trying to break down the Kiryu house's locked doors, and others opting to take the long way around, by entering the Tachibana family's house and crossing the thin bridge that connected them to the Kiryu house. Either way, everyone was in a state of panic; the sound of shattering furniture and agonizing moans had just come from within, but now the house was silent. Too silent.

Ryokan waited for the priests to break down the doors, and then followed them into the house, effectively joining the search. When he called out to the other villagers, ordering them to tell him when they had found anything, one of them immediately answered his call in a shaken voice.

When Ryokan worked his way through the twisting halls to the source of the call, he found himself in the "twins room", the room where the sacrificial siblings spent much of their time. He was side by side with one of the villagers, a grown man who was sobbing uncontrollably. What could this poor soul possibly have seen!

And then he saw what the villager saw: The two Osaka twins, huddled together at one end of the room amidst a pile of broken furniture, as pale as death itself.

They were dead, that much was certain. Looking closer, Ryokan could see that both twins had bruises around their neck, and it didn't take much imagination for him to be sure of exactly how they had died. But who killed them? Some random activist who was opposed to the ritual, maybe?

As if the true source of the panic sought to answer Ryokan's question, the villager standing in the room started to groan and cough. Ryokan's eyes darted over to the man's increasingly pale face, but he couldn't interpret what was wrong until his eyes focused on something surrounding the man's waist. The sight made him want to retch in disbelief.

Akane Kiryu was standing there, a malicious smile on her face.

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The story darkens. Reviews will be appreciated.


	4. Chapter 4: Malevolence of the Spirits

Chapter 4: Malevolence of the Spirits

Ryokan continued to stare on in awestruck disbelief. This wasn't Akane; it couldn't be! This thing only _looked_ like Akane: a young girl wearing a dark blue kimono and long, black hair that obscured her face. Aside of that, the girl now embracing the helpless villager was ashen and pale, her facial features forlorn and malicious. She was completely transparent.

Ryokan's eyes widened in horror as he realized what was really going on. It wasn't Akane, it was her spirit! Yoshitatsu's plan, it seemed, hadn't worked. The spirits had returned, and they were hungry for blood.

To see something so fascinating stunned him; even though he had accepted the possibly macabre ramifications of guarding over the Hellish Abyss, he hadn't ever expected to see an evil spirit this close.

He continued to observe, forgetting in his veneration and fear that the man standing next to him was dying, until the ghost finished, unsatisfied with its victim, and turned towards him.

The ghost was slow as it approached, and Ryokan could simply backtrack as he watched it. His fear dissipated, until he sensed another presence behind him, blocking his escape out of the twins room. He turned to gaze into the visage of..._Azami?_

Now not sure what exactly each of these apparitions were, Ryokan's fright came flooding back to him, not sure what to do as the twins both closed on him from opposite sides of the room, their arms outstretched in what he was sure would be an attempt at a deadly embrace.

Ryokan's mind raced for an escape plan. He gulped nervously, knowing that he would have to let them get dangerously close.

Seconds ticked by, feeling as long as hours to Ryokan as the pale forms of Akane and Azami inched closer. But just as they lifted their arms and quickened their pace, reaching for him in unison, Ryokan sprung to life. He darted quickly around Azami, who had been forced to move away from the door in order to close in on him.

Ryokan's plan barely worked, with Azami's icy fingers brushing his side as he passed by. When they did, Ryokan cried out and stumbled, crashing into the door so hard that it came off its hinges, depositing him alongside a pile of wooden shards in the house's twisting hallways. He grimaced as he arose; Azami's touch had delivered what felt like an icy shock. Ryokan had never felt anything like it, but he knew that he didn't want to feel it again.

The desire to avoid another icy touch spurned him on as he tore through the Kiryu house's twisting halls. As he did so, the spirits gave chase. He didn't look back, but Ryokan could feel the presence of the twins behind him. And, more than that, he could hear them - the drawling voice of a child that spoke inquisitively, parroting the same eerie phrase over and over again:

_Why do you kill?_

They continued to jeer him on as he reached the stairs. Ryokan knew exactly where he was going: the Kiryu's second floor study.

Ryokan desperately formed a plan in his head as he ran. Every upper class family in All Gods had a similar collection of tomes and occult literature, including books that contained spells and enchantments. With that knowledge, if Ryokan could reach the study before the spirit's fingers reached his throat, he could access the collection that the Kiryu's kept.

None of them had ever understood why the Kurosawas mandated that they keep those books, since they all believed that actual sorcery wasn't possible for an average person. But Ryokan was _not_ average! Yes, _HE_ could do it; he was the leader of All Gods village, guardian of the pit, and direct descendant of a family line so powerful, so extraordinary, that only _HE_ knew of its true origin!

Ryokan did succeed in finding a book filled with spells when he reached the study. Just as he had found one that should succeed in driving away whatever force was behind this attack, a voice rang from within the bookcase.

_I don't...want you... to...KILL!_

Ryokan tried to dart back at the last word, but the spirit's dirty trick had caught him off guard. Akane emerged through the bookcase, grabbing him around the waist and bringing him to the ground as the icy surge worked its way through his body, pulling precious life from him. It wasn't long before the apparition of Azami emerged and closed on him as well, and two pairs of hands found his throat.

The Ceremony Master struggled with all his might against the spirits. He couldn't allow himself to die this way, because he knew that if he died, then the rest of the village would follow him. But the two apparitions were strong enough to drag him back down every time he tried to rise, and for a moment, as Ryokan felt his conscious slipping away, it seemed as if his life would end early.

_"Yahhhh!"_

Suddenly, a shout followed by the scream of a girl caught Ryokan's fading attention. He looked up, dazed, to see what was happening. Whatever or whoever it was, it had prompted one spirit to leave him be, in favor of aiding the other one.

As Ryokan's vision returned to him, he saw that (not a second too soon) a veiled priest and two villagers had heard the conflict while crossing from the heaven bridge. The veiled priest, apparently lost in the panicked thought of losing the Ceremony Master, had raised his staff and tried to strike Azami with it.

By some sheer miracle, the priest's attack actually connected with Azami's head, crumpling her to the ground with a hollow knocking sound. Akane, feeling obvious compassion for her "sister", ran to her aid, proving quite intangible when the two villagers tried the same strategy against her.

Through force of will alone, Ryokan rose to his feet, leaning against a wall for support. He picked up the book and prepared to seize his chance to conjure the spell.

But then reality snuffed out his heightened sense of resolve as he watched the battle playing out before him. A simple question that he would have to answer in the next few seconds, before the two spirits overwhelmed his saviors: Which twin did he focus on?

As his eyes darted between the two identical spirits, he remembered the weird sound that one had made when it fell to the floor. It had sounded like a wooden plank being dropped to the ground. Looking closer, Ryokan saw an even stranger difference between the two that gave him some hope of telling them apart. One of the twins, the Azami one that had been struck by the priest's staff, was shambling in jarred, shaking movements, while the other twin, the spirit of Akane, moved gracefully and smoothly. Also, he noticed that Azami's spirit made odd, hollow sounds with each step she took. It sounded as if wooden blocks were tied to her feet and...

...wait a minute. Ryokan realized that there had been a grievous flaw in his own logic this entire time. He remembered, reasonable speaking, that Azami's spirit shouldn't even be here. He had seen her become a butterfly with his own eyes! There had to be something else at play here, but what was it?

Then it hit him: a piece to the puzzle that would connect all the others. He recalled his distant past as a young boy, when his father had been teaching him, preparing him for the day that he would assume the roll of Ceremony Master. Sengoku had told him that spirits, in addition to bearing influence over mortals, could possess other spirits as well!

Ryokan remembered from Yoshitatsu's notes that his fear was that Akane would die when the evil spirit in control of the doll completed its possession of her. But only now did Ryokan truly realize that the evil spirit had actually persisted in its possession of Akane, even after death!

As for the "Azami" spirit, the only possibility Ryokan could think of was that Akane had clung to her memory of the doll that consumed her life, and that it had somehow taken form. That was the only possibility, given that the evil spirit had long since completed its grip over Akane and thus, had no need for the doll as a host any longer.

In any case, Ryokan knew that focusing his spell upon Akane's spirit was his only chance. So he waited, preying that one of the girls would emit the hollow knocking sound. When one finally did, Ryokan immediately turned toward the other spirit, Akane's, which was occupied by the three men who were trying to keep the spirit's attention away from their leader. Summoning what little strength he had left, Ryokan bellowed out a brief but powerful chant, and held the book away from him at arm's length, with the pages open and facing Akane.

Upon his finishing the chant, a bright flash of light erupted from the book and filled the room, preceding a shrill scream from both of the spirits. When the light faded, to be replaced by the dim luminesce of the candles in the room, neither Akane nor the doll was anywhere to be seen.

Ryokan thanked the power of the book's spell, but that was all he could manage before collapsing to the floor, out of energy. As the concerned priest and villagers crowded around him, his vision became blurry again. Finally, the exhausted man gave into his lack of energy and fell into a deep sleep.

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In case anyone is curious, I know that the "sorcery" thing is a little weird, but then again, so are the ghosts and sixth senses. Ryokan's spell was meant to slightly mirror the flash of the camera obscura.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5: Tragedy of Consequences

Thanks for the compliment, AuthorNicola :)

On with the story. Standard disclaimers still apply.

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Chapter 5: Consequences

Ryokan found himself waking up in his master bed chamber, his head aching, in some unknown hour of the morning. He groaned as he tossed and turned in his bed, causing the covers to droop to the floor. Ryokan could still feel the aftershock of what had happened the previous night. His throat throbbed and felt course; he could remember the frigid grip of the Kiryu twins as they had seized his neck. His quick thinking, and the intervening of his trusted priest had barely kept him alive, and he was nothing if not grateful for it. He knew there was always hope for All Gods, as long as it had a ceremony master.

Ryokan's gratefulness, however, remained for only a moment, soon to be replaced by anxiety, curiosity, and depression.

His guilt burned him deeper than the touch of the spirits that had toyed with him so readily, the memory of the dear Osaka twins filling his aching mind. As Ryokan thought about it, it became more and more obvious just how terrifying a situation he found himself in. The village of All Gods had lost its most precious resource-its twins. Or, rather, he had failed to save them. And, without the precious Osaka twins, and with no other twins left in the entire village, there could be no sacrifice.

A tear came to Ryokan's eye as shame wrung the color from his face. His father was probably rolling in the grave at that moment, cursing the name of his failure of a son.

Ryokan wept bitterly until an embarrassed call came from across the room, compelling Ryokan to bottle his emotions and do his best to look the part of All Gods' leader. He wiped the tears away, and sat up straight in bed to give a good posture as one of Ryokan's most favored priests, the one from the Tachibana family, entered his room.

It was, at this moment, that Ryokan remembered his curiosity more clearly. He had obviously been out for a while, and if anything had happened during that time, anything to explain in greater detail just what had happened in the Kiryu house, he wanted to hear it. Looking sorrowful, dreading the task of having to tell the ceremony master just what had happened, the veiled priest began to elaborate:

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The damned souls of Akane and her "sister" hadn't re-appeared after Ryokan's close encounter with them. When he blacked out, the veiled priest had ordered the villagers to carry Ryokan out of the building, and take him back to his manor where he could be cared for. Doing that, the priests continued their search through the house. After all, one member of the Kiryu family, an unlucky soul that had been sharing the house with the Osaka twins at the time, was still unaccounted for.

So the priests had set off. They continued to come up empty handed, until the Tachibana priest came upon Yoshitatsu's old working quarters-his doll room.

Expecting and _hoping_ to see more of nothing, the Tachibana priest had instead finally stumbled on the Kiryu family member, only to find him lying dead on the ground. Unlike the Osaka twins, who had had red marks on their throats where the spirits seized them, the corpse sprawled on the ground had no marks on its body. Instead, the man was covered in a tangle of marionette strings, and a collection of Yoshitatsu's favorite dolls adorned his corpse.

The priest knew what must have happened-only one man that he knew of had such an affinity for toy-making.

_"Akane...I'm...sorry..."_

An aged, ethereal voice broke the silence, reaching the priest's ears as a whisper, from the adjacent room. A sense of dread now invoked in him, the priest knew that he was no longer alone.

_"I...should've...allowed you to...grieve...there is...no substitute"_

The priest edged slowly toward the old door that lead into the other room, his heart beating ever faster as he could clearly hear the shuffling of feet close by.

_"Kill one half of the twin shrine maidens..."_

The voice contained a hateful undertone, and the smart priest ultimately decided to resist his curiosity. He didn't know if Yoshitatsu's spirit would turn out to be hostile or not, but it wasn't a question that he was willing to die for. As he turned to leave the house with the Kiryu member's body, Yoshitatsu uttered one final portentous call, one that the priest feared had more truth to it than either of them knew:

_"We...are all...doomed"_

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Ryokan listened to the story intently. No one had been inside the Kiryu's house since the incident, and no one was eager to risk being the one to try it first. Eventually, the priest gave his well wishes and departed, leaving Ryokan alone with his thoughts.

As Ryokan rubbed his sore throat and pondered a possible solution to All Gods' predicament, his mind began to wander, eventually thinking of the day that the "crimson sacrifice" ritual took its modern shape. It had been a long time ago, maybe one hundred years after All Gods' founding, that the high priests together decided upon the best way to keep the Hellish Abyss appeased.

Human misery was the best way to accomplish their goal. But the Kusabi ritual, in which an outsider was abducted, tortured to death, and tossed into the pit while still barely alive, was proving no longer adequate to keep the Abyss quiet. So they developed a new ritual, one fiendishly designed to take what was possibly the strongest bond of love on earth, and tear it apart. The debating men ultimately decided that the bond shared by identical twins would be a good choice. From there the Crimson Sacrifice ritual, in which one twin would strangle the other to death, was born. After a few decades of trial and error, the priests fleshed out the details of the ritual, and the village soon became adorned with deity statues, one per decade-one for each sacrifice.

No one had ever had trouble enforcing the ritual before, and surely not Ryokan. He could even recall his own ritual, when he had killed his younger brother. He remembered it all: the ethereal glow of burning candles all around him, the clanging of the priest's staffs as they banged them on the floor of the stone cavern in unison, the ritualistic chanting of his father, and above all, the withering beat of his brother's pulse as Ryokan crushed the life out of him.

They had loved each other, more than anything. But Ryokan knew the purpose for which they lived, for which they were born to begin with, and for which one of them must die. Ryokan had never felt any shame for it. Until now.

He could still feel the grip of Akane's ghostly fingers around his neck. There had not been anything ceremonious or honorable about that feeling. Instead, it had been terrifying and painful, the pressure making him feel like his head was going to rupture. It had given him the panicked feeling that people get when they find that they can't draw breath, the feeling that one _will_ die slowly and helplessly. Now that he had known this pain for himself, Ryokan felt the first genuine remorse for his actions that he had felt since his ritual took place.

As Ryokan wrestled with the consequences of his ritual, he was interrupted by a soft knocking on his room's door. Expecting to see another priest, Ryokan's face and the room were instantly brightened as a beautiful young woman entered his bed chamber. Impressive in every conceivable way, the woman was taller than _he_ was, and he couldn't help but stare at her. Adorned in a light purple kimono, the woman had flowing black hair that cascaded down to her hips, blue crystalline eyes, and the prettiest smile he had ever seen.

Speaking in a calm voice that was almost as beautiful as she was, the woman, one of the leftover members of the Kiryu family, informed Ryokan that the veiled priests had charged her with taking care of him while he recovered, as the other members of the Kurosawa family were busy running the village. Telling him that she would come to check on him soon, the gorgeous woman sat by his bedside and rubbed his sore neck gingerly before departing, giving him a mysterious look before closing the door to his room.

His heart beating faster now than it had been when he was under attack, Ryokan suddenly had a visitation of confidence and determination that superseded his fears. He still felt sorry for what had happened to his brother-what he had done-but Ryokan came to the realization that his brother's life, and that of Azami, and all the other sacrificed individuals over the past hundreds of years, would have been lost for nothing if Ryokan allowed a small traumatic experience to simply force him to give up. All Gods, the twins, and he himself all existed to serve their purpose, they always had, and nothing could change that.

The woman that had visited Ryokan as he grieved had given him just an example of all the beauty in the world, but there would be no beauty for anyone if he and the village failed to keep the Abyss appeased. To do that, Ryokan would go to the ends of the earth and beyond, doing whatever was necessary. It was a cruel prospect, but a necessary one.

And the village's current lack of twins wouldn't bother him either, because _that_ problem had a simple solution, and one that many people would probably look forward to implementing.

Filled with new life, Ryokan sprung out of bed with a smile on his face, despite the aches in his body which he now ignored. Determined to do his part to bring new twins into the world, Ryokan donned his best kimono and set off through the Kurosawa manor, determined to find the beautiful woman that had brought hope to him.

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Hope you're all enjoying the story. Reviews will be appreciated.


	6. Chapter 6: The Veil of Peace

Thank you very much for reviewing, Fan of Games. To answer your questions:

1. Are the events in this story what actually happened before the Repentace, or did you make them up?

At the start of the story (the part you're reading right now) the events are a combination of what actually happened, with original details added in. As the story goes on, though, I got bored with simply giving a history of the village, so the events get more creative and more original there.

2. How long have you been planning on making this story?

It wasn't planned. I just started one night and it grew quickly. However, I had brainstormed a lot of ideas before I knew that I was going to write a story. Now, ever since I started, the story has become more planned out.

Thanks again for reviewing! I'm glad you like this story so much, and I think you'll like it even more as it goes on. Thank you for your suggestion as well; I'll have to add "Lost in Time: Silent Hill" to my list.

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Chapter 6:The Veil of Peace

The precious few years that followed the day of Ryokan's battle were arguably some of the best that All Gods had ever seen, despite the terrifying events that preceded them, and certainly were the highlight of Ryokan's otherwise grim and somber life. The joy started in the year of 1853, when Ryokan caught up with the intoxicating woman that had paid him a visit in his bed chamber. She had been admiring the scenery of one of Kurosawa manor's garden atriums when he found her. Straightening up, and hoping that he wasn't about to embarrass himself, Ryokan invited her to dine with him that night, using her willingness to help him recover as an excuse. The clever woman saw right through him, but turning down an offer from the village's leader wasn't an option that she was eager to explore. So she gave a smile, introducing herself as Kiyomi Kiryu, and took his arm affectionately. With that, the two sauntered off, with the promise of a memorable day ahead.

From that day on, All Gods fortune began to look up, something that it rarely, if ever, did. Even with the number of years without a crimson sacrifice beginning to accumulate, it seemed as if the rancorous demigods dwelling within the Hellish Abyss weren't interested in taking notice. As weeks turned to months, All Gods skies seemed to match Ryokan's newfound personality, growing slightly brighter every day as time passed. Ryokan, for fear that the villagers would lose their respect for him, initially tried to keep his relationship a secret, taking care never to be seen with Kiyomi in public. Only his closest priests knew.

But, as months turned to years, and their love story became more passionate, Ryokan gradually found his secretive, stingy old self melting away, smothered seemingly out of existence by Kiyomi's loving embrace. In time, Ryokan didn't feel obliged to keep her a secret, and the two of them announced their plans to wed.

In the meantime, All Gods' day to day routine didn't stop, not even for them. The Kiryu house, now useless due to its curse, was boarded up. They still had the Tachibana house, which would now serve as the location where twin sacrifices spent their last days together. The few remaining members of the effectively dead Kiryu family were adopted into other families, Kiyomi the most famous among them.

Kusabi sacrifices continued from year to year unabated. Planting and harvesting seasons continued, drawing no less than they always had. People simply went about their lives.

Of course, Ryokan wasn't so blinded by love that he couldn't remember to implement his plan, especially since it involved love so heavily. If All Gods had run out of twin siblings, then they would simply have to make more.

Years continued to pass as the members of All Gods' upper class tried in vein to give birth to new twins. After quite an "effort", the families finally succeeded, and more than once! The first pair of twins, Itsuki and Mutsuki Tachibana, were born in 1857, and one year after that, another pair of twins were born.

These twins, Yae and Sae, were Ryokan's daughters.

Ryokan prayed to the gods more than ever during those years, praising their generosity for bestowing upon him such an ideal family. He and Kiyomi raised the twin girls together, bringing them gradually out of their infant years.

It was a break from the village's usual practices that _should have_ been brought to a screeching halt when the year 1863 came, the year that another sacrifice was due to be attempted. Fortunately (or unfortunately), after what had happened with Akane and Azami, Ryokan doubted the sentience of trying to sacrifice _either_ pair of twins at that time. The Kiryu twins had been twelve years old when they were sacrificed, and Itsuki and Mutsuki were only six years of age.

So Ryokan elected to wait. It was risky, perhaps more so than he thought, but in another decade, Itsuki and Mutsuki would be at a perfect age for the sacrifice. And besides, in the twenty years since the last crimson sacrifice, the Hellish Abyss hadn't made a sound. Even the mourners seemed content, and that was saying a lot, given that the mourners lived around the pit at all times. Yes, Ryokan didn't see a reason that his luck should end abruptly.

If only the fates were as kind. Ryokan, happy as he was, had been foolish.

The Hellish Abyss hadn't forgotten anything. The foul entities that slumbered carelessly inside its gaping maw never let a failure to pay tribute go quietly. The only thing keeping their malice at bay was the sheer amusement they drew from Ryokan's new personality. The way that he continued about his life, cheerful and content, not even realizing what a horrible mistake he had made, had allowed to happen, was a true testament to how weak the flesh really was. This gave the spirits a form of amusement, and so they bided their time. But his self-ridicule wouldn't satiate them for much longer-soon the pit would find its voice once more, a "voice" that would peel away sanity and tear asunder the delusions of safety that Ryokan now felt.

Ryokan's true mistakes wouldn't have been noticeable to the average person, as the problem was complicated and had more than one source, but to him, the error in judgment that would lead to his downfall should have been painfully obvious. It started about ten years back, when Ryokan had been in the full throes of romance. Ryokan's love affair, the first he had ever experienced, had been so torrid in the days before he was married that he and Kiyomi found themselves acting less like the sentient guardians of the village's spiritual traditions, and more like young lovers, despite the fact that Ryokan was into his 40's by then. As Ryokan's self control diminished, he found himself wearing his traditional "Ceremony Master" kimono less and less, in favor of more casual attire, until all of his formal clothes were gathering even layers of dust. He would act 20 years younger than he actually was, running with her through the village (for all to see), and rolling around carelessly with her in his arms, in the few open fields that All Gods' dense landscape offered.

The other source of Ryokan's unseen problems was the nature in which Kusabi sacrifices were gathered. As All Gods' had continued to abduct one person from the outside world per year, for _hundreds of years_, the "outside world" had grown leery of the forest that All Gods was buried within. Year after year, the effort that the upper class families of All Gods had to exert in order to bring back an outsider, willingly or by force, became ever greater. Eventually, it became necessary for members of high standing families (usually charming women) to mingle in the outside world, sometimes for _months_, simply to gain the trust of their intended victim.

Of course, the side effect of this plan was that the women who ventured out into the free world brought their experiences, as well as samples of other cultures, back with them. In fact, one case that disturbed Ryokan particularly was that of a woman from his own family who had never returned. He wasn't sure why she had elected not to come back, but All Gods hadn't had any unwelcome guests, so he assumed that she had simply moved on with her life elsewhere, not revealing any of the village's secrets.

Although there were no direct consequences for any of these mistakes, they all acted to corrode the sacred traditions of the village, rotting them from the top down. Observing Ryokan acting as jovial as a child had given All Gods' upper class the boost of confidence needed to talk openly, and the influx of ideas from the world around them only made it worse. Despite the efforts of the veiled priests to enforce the laws and customs of the village, without a strong ceremony master to back up their efforts, All Gods' culture was slowly starting to unravel.

Of course, none of this was a serious problem yet. The people experiencing freedom of thought still had no wishes to leave the village. But, as the new trend continued through the decade, one of Ryokan's greater nightmares began to transpire.

In the past, the family masters and their wives weren't simply responsible for controlling the village: they were responsible for raising the next generation, chief among them the children destined to become sacrifices.

Now, with All Gods' strict traditions no longer on everyone's minds, Yae, Sae, Itsuki, and Mutsuki found themselves being raised by parents who didn't hound them constantly with dogmatic speeches and propaganda. No one was preparing them for their destinies.

No, these children were allowed to grow up freely, a privilege that previous twins hadn't been allowed. The four children grew into their teens playing together, laughing together, and learning together, and as they did so, the twins grew to love each other immensely, more dedicated to each other than any siblings before them.

No one, not even Ryokan, would be able to understand the power that these relationships held, until it was too late.

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It had been a clear night, not unlike any other. The year was 1873, and a new sacrifice would be due soon. Ryokan had been taking a lonely stroll through the village-Kiyomi was back with Itsuki, Mutsuki, Sae, and Yae, who were all together in the Kurosawa house. They had been spending a lot of time lately, but Ryokan just assumed that it was because they had been childhood friends; nothing to worry about.

"AAAAAAHHHHHH!"

A piercing scream emitted from beyond central All Gods, so startling that Ryokan nearly tripped over his robes in shock. Through the clear night sky, giant plumes of black smoke were easily visible, and they were coming from his house.

Ryokan ran toward the source as fast as he could, preying that nothing had happened to those that he cared about. Fortunately, Ryokan was wrong; the plumes hadn't been coming from his house at all, emitting instead from an enormous fire just behind it. The fire seemed to have afflicted a grain field near All Gods' river.

It was a horrible sight to behold. An entire grain field, burning so thoroughly that there was no plant material discernible among the roaring yellow flames. The fire seared the ground and sent smoke into the sky, obscuring it and turning it a sickly gray color. The house nearby, a fairly large farmers homestead, was completely consumed, but Ryokan could see a man lying outside what had presumably been its doors, just out of the fire's reach. His skin was burned severely.

Ryokan ran forward and dragged the man to the river banks. He was still conscious, but in intense pain.

"What happened here!" Ryokan shouted, hoping to get some clue of what could have incinerated an entire field. The man looked slowly up at Ryokan, and his facial expression turned malevolent.

"You! This was _your_ fault!" The man shouted, pointing accusingly at Ryokan. He was taken aback to say the least; Ryokan hadn't even known about this fire until he saw the smoke.

"That was the only thing they told me," the farmer continued. "The last thing I heard before my entire family was consumed by the blaze! It was _your fault. Your fault! YOUR FAULT_!"

Ryokan wasn't sure what "they" could possibly mean, but the progression of events suddenly made sense when he heard a piercing shriek emanating from within the house. It was too horrible, too shrill to have simply come from a living person. No, this was something that Ryokan would hear in his nightmares until his final days. It sounded like a nightmare that had come from the depths of hell itself, and that was exactly what it was.

As the wailing shriek and increasingly hysterical voice of the farmer both reached his ears, Ryokan was painfully reminded of how dedicated he had once been to his work, and how he had managed to forget it all for a period of almost two decades. Had the charms of one woman really made such a fool of him!

The dying farmer was right, this _was_ his fault. Apparently, Ryokan was finally paying the price for his selfishness.

The earth around Ryokan began to tremble violently, knocking him to his knees. As Ryokan wept bitterly, unseen forces watched him from afar, drinking his misery and laughing cruelly as All Gods' last moments of happiness burned on the funeral pyre, consigning an entire era of All Gods' existence to a forgotten history.

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Hope you're enjoying the story. Reviews will be appreciated.


	7. Chapter 7: Woman's Warning

Chapter 7: Woman's Warning

Ryokan didn't know where he was, he just knew that he had to get out. For what had seemed like an eternity, Ryokan had been rushing through a series of passages that existed within a deep cavern. It was so large that Ryokan couldn't see any of its walls, but he still knew that he couldn't be outside. He could smell, even feel, the stagnation in the air. No wind blew in the cavern, and no light penetrated it, save for the source-less light now illuminating the path that Ryokan was barreling through. There were old torii gates surrounding him, wreathing his path of escape. The gates were crumbled and aged, and many bore lengths of rope that hung down, dangling, swatting at Ryokan's face as he sprinted along the stone path.

With every step he took, every pace that brought him deeper and deeper into the cavern, Ryokan wanted nothing more than to turn around and never look back. The air became more and more rotten with each turn the stone walkway took, and many of the ropes that brushed up against him, feeling as if they would reach out and bind him at any moment, were covered in dried blood and small bits of bone.

But that wasn't the worst part. Ryokan could sense something within the bowels of the cavern, a presence that felt like it would reach out and tear his very soul from him. All around him, Ryokan could hear the voices; haunting, unnatural cries of those that had once been alive, calling out to unseen sources as they swirled around in the darkness. Strangest of all, the living terror that Ryokan now found himself in seemed almost familiar. It was a feeling that he had experienced before-a chill that washed over him whenever he came near the Hellish Abyss of his own village.

But not like this; the malice that laid within the expanse of this cavern felt like the breath of Hades itself, and Ryokan knew that any place where he could hear the cries of the dead was a macabre setting even for his standards, and certainly not a good place to find yourself running towards.

Yet he kept running, his apprehension intensifying with each step. As horrible as the deep darkness of the chasm was, Ryokan was constantly aware of the much greater horror hovering toward him, no doubt struggling simply to pull its enormous form through the warped torii gates that he left in the distance. The sound of ropes tugging, strained as they were pulled along the ground, made it abundantly clear: she was coming.

As Ryokan continued his descent into hell, suddenly the path widened into a small expanse of stone. At the opposite end of the rocky platform stood a massive gate marked with tusk-shaped carvings adorned with sacred markings and runic writing. Ryokan recognized them as the same ones that adorned the stones and torii gates that led to the Hellish Abyss, and he knew simply from their presence that he couldn't continue any further. Turning to find a way around the massive expanse of rock that contained the gate's entrance, Ryokan realized, with a gasp of horror, that he had no other escape. His mouth dry and his body shaking with terror that he had never known, Ryokan turned to face his pursuer.

The cavern lit up with an unnatural glow as the woman floated through the last torii gate to face Ryokan. Like Azami and Akane, she was a spirit that had not been laid to rest properly, and he couldn't help but speculate that she had been created in a way similar to that in which those two had. But Akane, who had nearly taken Ryokan's life, was nothing compared with the imposing soul now lurching toward him.

_"Feel...my...pain!"_

It was a young woman, adorned with a white kimono. Her long black hair obscured most of her face, but the features that Ryokan could make out were all twisted into a wicked expression, speaking wordlessly of her hidden intentions. All five of her limbs were bound by severed ropes, which dragged along the stone floor as she floated ever closer. They stayed slightly taut and made a tugging noise, as if being pulled upon by forces unseen. Worst of all, the space immediately behind her was occupied by what looked like a living incarnation of evil. An enormous, writhing mass of gray heads and arms followed the woman closely, all branching out from a tumor that attached itself inexorably to her back, and all clawing hungrily...in Ryokan's direction.

A terrible chill fell over him as the woman closed in, her arms at her sides. His mind raced for an answer, but before he had so much as a thought, the woman lunged at him. Ryokan tried to run to the woman's side, but he made the grim error of passing the bulging mass behind her too closely. Drawn quickly back to the woman by an arm that had succeeded in catching his own, Ryokan found his attempts to resist her fruitless as one arm binding him became dozens. She pulled him in effortlessly until he was completely immobilized, his body pressed by the many arms against hers so firmly that he could smell the raw decay of her previous victims. She was cold as death.

And yet she didn't kill him. Though Ryokan was sure that she could've ripped him apart, all the woman did was turn him around, so that he was staring into the massive gate that marked the end of the passageway. With that, she simply waited.

Ryokan stood there, pressed uncomfortably against the woman's silvery kimono, waiting for death, or a chance of escape, to come. Nervous visions of All Gods village being razed by the deities of the Hellish Abyss came flooding into his mind; he knew it would be the inevitable outcome for his village if he didn't escape. As his mind raced, Ryokan felt something.

It was the cavern...the entire underground structure was beginning to rumble, and Ryokan had a creeping and terrible suspicion that it was far worse than an ordinary earthquake. As the ground around him began to crack and stalagmites fell all around him, hitting the floor with earsplitting rumbles, Ryokan's attention was eventually drawn away from the destruction and towards the crumbling gate in front of them. The massive structure's stone doors, which had been bound by enormous, thick ropes, were beginning to creak open, defying the binds that attempted to hold them closed. Something horrible was pushing its way in from the other side.

Ryokan had seen the runic markings, had smelled the rot, had heard the cries of the damned, and they were all amplifying, growing stronger as the wretches of hell barged their ways through the doors. When he fully realized what fate now awaited him-the fate of any one of such ill fortune to find themselves in such a wrong place at such a wrong time-Ryokan's heart stopped cold. Frantically, Ryokan gazed, wide-eyed, up at the woman holding him, hoping that she would come to the same conclusion that he had and flee.

But this was of no use; the twisted apparition keeping Ryokan glued to the spot that he stood on was as terrifying as the shadowed gate itself. She returned his gaze and parted her hair so that he could look into her eyes, but her pale stare returned an expression not of fear or care, but of abject cruelty. The otherwise lifeless eyes flicked from him to the gate, willing Ryokan to stare head-on into his own death.

Ryokan nearly cried; this couldn't be happening! It wasn't true-couldn't be! He had made mistakes in his life; had done thing that he wasn't proud of. But what could he have possibly done to deserve this death! Even the villagers of All Gods would literally die without him-what had they done to deserve it?

Was it even real? It seemed real enough, but perhaps he was caught in a dream. A nightmare...a vivid one.

As the massive gate finally exploded under the pressure with a low rumble, sending a mass of dark shadows and stone shards flying toward them both, Ryokan shut his eyes tight, and prayed that it was the latter.

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Reviews will be appreciated.


	8. Chapter 8: Between Nightmares

Thanks again for the continued support, Fan of Games! I really appreciate it.

To answer your question, the ghost in Chapter 7 was indeed Kirie. The real question is, why did Ryokan have a vision of her? Is it just a reminder, or something more? ;)

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Chapter 8: Between Nightmares

The room slowly came into view. Black at first, then a blur of dull colors, then finally the distinct outlines of his furniture, his bed, and his beautiful wife lying at his side, plainly visible as he looked around in a daze. After pinching himself to assure that his feeling had returned to him, he felt tempted to cry out with joy. His hopes had been answered; it was all a dream.

Ryokan had woken up in a puddle of his own sweat, to find his body caressed by the gentile glow and warmth of the ornamental oil lamps that illuminated his window-less bed chamber. He looked around the dull room to find his eyes settling on Kiyomi, still asleep despite the late hour. Ryokan's servants had snuck in and lit the lamps, indicating that they had overslept. It annoyed him that his servants hadn't bothered to wake him, but they had probably been scared of his reaction, which he didn't necessarily blame them for. He had been edgy, after all, ever since...

Ryokan hadn't truly recovered from the night that the farmer's field caught fire, and he hadn't been helped by the events that followed it, at the end of the year. Upon finding that the next crimson sacrifice was needed immediately, Ryokan had made swift preparations for Itsuki and Mutsuki to carry out the ritual before years end. He had talked with Kanehira Tachibana-the boys' father, veiled priest representing their household, and a long time friend of Ryokan-about letting his boys go, and been pleased to find that the man was perfectly willing.

Theoretically, nothing had gone wrong, as it had in the past. The "Altar Twins" were kept clear of the Kiryu house during their cleansing ceremonies to prevent trouble, and Ryokan mandated that guards be placed outside the twins' room at all times.

When the night of the ceremony finally came, Ryokan met with the two boys ahead of time to talk to them, and make sure that they were both willing to go through with the ceremony. He was good at reading people, and when both Itsuki and Mutsuki answered that they were dedicated to completing the ritual, Ryokan had no doubt that they were both being sincere.

Of course, now, all of this just made him more bitter, and he struggled to pull himself up from the low-lying bed. He removed his night dressings and changed into a casual, light green kimono. He wasn't feeling flamboyant that day...how could he?

He had no idea why, but Itsuki and Mutsuki's ritual had failed all the same. Ryokan had been there to see Itsuki strangle Mutsuki, and he had watched as the mourners tossed the body into the Abyss. But when it was over...no butterfly. No guardian to watch over the village. And, worst of all, no end to the displeasure that the pit brought.

"Ryokan...how long have you been up?"

Ryokan jumped; he had been pacing across the room for ten minutes, and the creaking noise of the floorboards had apparently woken Kiyomi up. She was sitting up in bed, still in her pajamas, staring at him curiously.

"Ugh, not long. Sorry for waking you; this damned place is falling apart." Ryokan droned back, kicking the floorboards lightly.

Kiyomi giggled softly, and Ryokan returned her light heartedness with a small smile, though it still betrayed his frustration.

"The floors have always sounded like this, dear, and you didn't seem to mind twenty years ago." she said, climbing out of bed to join him in getting dressed.

"'Twenty years...those days are long past." Ryokan said, bitterness in his voice. He missed the old days, when his hair wasn't graying, when the villagers weren't starving, and when he had, in his relative peace, been able to dream only of her, and their children. Now, his dreams were impaled by visions of ethereal horrors. That woman, the one from his dream...

"You were having nightmares again, weren't you?" Kiyomi asked softly, rubbing his shoulder. Ryokan sighed deeply, knowing that she was right. It had been the third sleepless night of that week. The third night that _she_ had appeared.

His mind flashed back to what he had seen in his dream that night. He saw the dank cavern, felt the woman's icy touch as her arms wrapped around him, and heard her unfeeling voice.

_"I'll make you feel my pain."_

The woman in the white kimono said that to him every night that she appeared, or some variation of it. Ryokan was loosing his ability to chalk it all up as a coincidence, but it didn't matter. Three nights of suffering, and he still had no idea what the dream meant-no idea what the suffering was supposed to teach him, and no way to find out.

"I don't want to talk about it. Come on, the servants probably have breakfast ready by now, and the girls will eat it all if we aren't down there soon." he said. He had lied; both he and Kiyomi knew it. His twin daughters never ate more than they had to, often less, but Ryokan desperately wanted an excuse to escape the conversation before it turned toward the visions that had been plaguing him.

As he strolled quickly out of the room and down the hall, Kiyomi called out to him, and her voice hinted at desperation.

"You know, Ryokan, you may be our Ceremony Master, but did it ever occur to you that you don't have to solve every problem yourself! You can't live that way all your life..."

Ryokan ignored her pleas as he headed toward the nearest stairwell, bound for the great hall.

xxXXxx

The great hall wasn't vibrantly colored; almost nothing in the Kurosawa house was. Save for the gorgeous depiction of a forest landscape that was painted on a giant folding screen, the room's floors, walls, and ceiling, most of which were constructed of wood, were dully colored hues of brown and white. The room had several wooden lattices and folding screens that separated the dining area, near the center, from the area that served as a hallway between the garden atrium on one side, and the expanse of hallways at the opposite side, and there was a sunken fireplace/stove at the center, but it was otherwise unfurnished.

But the plain room still served all the purposes that Ryokan needed it to. It most often accommodated his family when they met for any purpose, even things as simple as breakfast, in this case. But, come the time of the endless ceremony, it more often served as a meeting place for Ryokan and his priests, in the final days before the rituals in which they would make preparations and address concerns.

As Ryokan entered the room through a sliding door, the inviting aroma of cooked rice, with sides of fresh fish and vegetables, greeted him. As he rounded the folding screen to access the gap in the wooden lattices that served as the dining area's entrance, three familiar faces, all soft, young, and caring, came into view.

The first face that Ryokan saw always served to brighten his day. Sae, one of his fifteen year old twin daughters, was sitting dutifully waiting for him to arrive. She was a sweet child, with soft, feminine facial features; smooth, short, brown hair; and a white kimono that glistened when light flickered on it. Ryokan had always loved her, but in the last month-the month that followed Itsuki's failed ritual-he had found her bringing more honor to him than ever. Ryokan had expected her, from the moment that Itsuki's ritual was announced a failure, to be terrified of her destiny. After all, she was the one destined to die at the end of the next decade, to become the next butterfly, to leave her sister whom she loved so much.

But Sae was different that the other shrine maidens; she not only understood and acknowledged her fate with maturity, she _embraced_ it with a vigor that not even Ryokan's own brother had shown. She had listened to him telling her of what would befall her in the coming years, and received his words with wonder in her shining, brown eyes. At first, she had been confused, but Ryokan put her at ease by elaborating on one of the oldest beliefs in the village. It had been the ancient conviction that twins looked and sounded alike because they had once been a single being in their mother's womb-and that performing the crimson sacrifice ritual did more than just create misery. It caused a split in the soul of the one sacrificed; two halves that performed two purposes. The first half would remain among the living, by rejoining the soul of its twin, the "remaining" twin. The other half would take the form of an ethereal, crimson butterfly, and join all the past sacrifices in watching over the village, until the end of time.

As Ryokan had elaborated to Sae, he had seen her confused look turn to a smile, and seen that smile grow and grow, until it was evident that she _wanted_ to die, that she wanted to be strangled to death, and that she wanted to rejoin her sister, with all her heart. It made Ryokan the proudest father in the village, and gave him hope that his next ritual would be his last failure.

Then he saw the other two who, conversely to what Sae had just done, made him feel glum immediately. They were Yae, Sae's twin sister, and Itsuki, the best friend of both of them. In appearance, Yae was identical to Sae, but she was different from her sister in the one way that mattered more than any other. She was, had always been, opposed to ritual, and had been resisting Ryokan's efforts to reassure her of the importance of her fate for the last month. He suspected that she was joined in her doubt by Itsuki, but at least he, having felt the misery of the ritual already, had a semblance of an excuse; Yae had _none_.

"Good morning, father." Yae called out feebly, distracting Ryokan from his thoughts. He forced himself to look cheerful at Yae and Itsuki's presence, and sat down...next to Sae.

"Good morning Sae, Yae,...Itsuki." Ryokan muttered the last name under his breath, drawing a nervous look from the sixteen year old, ebony-haired boy which he addressed. Ryokan barely tried to hide his dislike of Itsuki, who he thought should feel honored that he was allowed to associate with his daughters _at all_. Future shrine maidens usually weren't allowed to affiliate with others, especially not anyone of the opposite sex, but Itsuki's presence had a tendency to give Sae strength, and make her feel purposeful. Since she had been born weak and frail, indeed feeling helpless without her sister at her side, Ryokan felt obliged to give his favorite daughter the comfort of at least one friend.

"Forgive me for asking, Itsuki, but exactly who let you inside?" Ryokan stated curtly.

"Sae did; she thought that you wouldn't mind if I..."

"Oh no, it's perfectly alright-I was just curious. What's mine is yours, of course..." Ryokan spoke without meaning a word of what he said. Itsuki returned his comment with a plain look, before the five (Kiyomi had joined them) began to dig in.

"Umm, father...," Yae spoke, her voice determined, "if you could spare a few moments, I was hoping to talk with you about something."

"I see, and what would it be, Yae?" Ryokan returned, fearing that he already knew what she wanted to address him about.

"It's...well...it's about the ritual." Yae replied. Of course it was about the ritual; she had tried dozens of times to convince Ryokan that he should reconsider the importance of the ritual that kept the entire town free of disaster. It was aggravating, really.

"We've discussed and re-discussed this multiple times, Yae." Ryokan asserted, "I understand your reserved feelings; I had them too, when I was your age. But you were born for this purpose, and you need to accept that. Please don't talk to me about this again."

Quickly enraged by her father's curt indifference, Yae began to tremble. Sae and Itsuki, foreseeing what was about to happen, scooted back from the center of the room.

"Purpose! What purpose! The purpose of murdering my own sister-YOUR daughter! To take one of my greatest blessings in life, and crush it with my own hands! And for what! Some draconian ritual meant to satisfy the demons that assail all of us!"

Ryokan was taken aback by Yae's abrupt anger; she was normally so well-mannered. But he answered her accusing tone, and he attempted to control his own temper as he did so.

"Yae, you're operating under a delusion. It is your destiny to..."

"Don't talk to me about destiny, father! I wasn't born with a purpose, I was born human, just like Sae was! And if I do have a destiny, then it is to live my life with my sister, not to kill her in cold blood! You'll call that a lie over my dead body!" Yae spat back, her face reddening with rage.

"Neither you nor I will do anything over _your_ dead body, Yae!" Ryokan said. Although he didn't mention her by name, Ryokan shot a glance in Sae's direction that sent shivers down everyone's spines. Sae and Kiyomi, both trembling with fear, had shuffled nearly to the back of the room at that point, and Sae's face was buried in her mother's kimono.

Itsuki tried to interject, hoping to stop the conversation before it got even more out of hand.

"Yae, Ryokan, please! There's no need for..."

"SHUT UP, you insufferable nuisance!" Ryokan roared in Itsuki's direction, stifling him instantly. His short temper had finally snapped. "If YOU hadn't failed YOUR ritual..."

_That_ was enough to push an already fuming Yae over the Abyss' edge as well.

"Don't you DARE talk to him that way, father!" Yae bellowed. "His attempt to perform YOUR ritual may have failed, but have you ever overcome your zealotry long enough to wonder why!"

Ryokan paused to let Yae continue. Even in his rage, he wondered if Yae really knew the answer to her own question.

She continued with an awful glare of anger on her face.

"It was because Itsuki and Mutsuki cared about each other; not exactly a crime worth berating him for in my book! But what about you, Ryokan! You killed your own brother, and now you expect me to do the same to your own daughter! How can you be so..."

Yae was cut short when Ryokan growled and stood up, knocking his plate onto the ground. He towered over her, casting a murky shadow onto her diminished form.

"You think YOU have the right to call ME unfeeling! "Ryokan exclaimed with furor. "I have spent my entire life dedicating myself to THIS VILLAGE, and its people...their lives! I loved my brother with all my heart, but it didn't stop me or him from doing what was necessary. But YOU, Yae...you may be my daughter, but you're nothing like me! You grew up with no real responsibility of your own, and you know NOTHING of self-sacrifice! So no, Yae, you don't have the right to judge me; _not yet_!

The room stood painfully silent for what seemed like an eternity, with nothing but the rare clatter of a plate to keep the family company. As Ryokan gained back control of himself, he looked to find a room that resembled a battlefield, and slowly began to realize just how terrifying his last words had been. Sae and Kiyomi were still huddled together. Sae's look was of abject terror; Kiyomi's, a look of accusation. Itsuki made no reaction at all, but Ryokan could tell that he had been phased. He was crouched on the ground, as if ready to flee on a moment's notice.

Like a tsunami that washed people's courage away and left them powerless, the realization of what Ryokan had just said and done came flooding around him. As he succumbed to the agony of his own guilt, Ryokan attempted to backstep out of the great hall, but before he did, Yae called back to him in a somber tone. Her face, a stalwart stare that pierced his soul, was the worst to behold.

"Dad, you once told us the story of your encounter with Azami and Akane, over two decades ago. You were so proud to have survived, and Sae and I enjoyed the story because we loved to hear of your accomplishment as well."

Yae glanced down at the creaky wood floor, which was littered with broken plates, before continuing.

"Yes, Yae, I remember." Ryokan muttered, still beside himself in the aftermath of the embittering argument.

"Well, Ryokan, doesn't that prove my point? The simple feeling of joy that you gained, just by knowing that you were alive, doesn't that prove that all life is precious?"

Ryokan returned her final words with silence-he didn't have the strength left to say anything else. He simply stumbled through the doorway behind him, and broke into a run once he was out of earshot, his kimono dragging on the floor and snagging on loose boards as he tore through the hallways, bound for the house's front entrance.

It was a nightmare, perhaps worse than that which he had endured in his dreams just that morning. Ryokan had been considered by others, and by himself, to be a mighty warrior; the legend that fought demons and lived to tell of it. Yet, for all the grandeur and glory of that day that took place some twenty years ago, Ryokan was fleeing his own house, chased out by his own demons, and those of his family. They packed a unique punch deep at his core. It was one that couldn't be measured by the cold, or the pain; no, these were demons of a far more terrible nature. And, perhaps worst of all, these were demons that Ryokan couldn't point a sword or a spellbook at, and wish away, no matter how badly he wanted to.

xxXXxx

Reviews will be appreciated.


	9. Chapter 9: Things Change

Thanks for commenting, Nanumi! I'll be sure to give your "Crimson Dream" story a read when I have spare time. And thanks also for pointing out my mistake. I proof-read this chapter more carefully, so it shouldn't happen again.

Standard disclaimers still apply.

Chapter 9: Things Change

* * *

Kanehira, home from a shift guarding the entrance into the ceremonial chambers of the Kurosawa manor, surveyed his stately household with a plain look on his veiled face. He hadn't heard a peep from anywhere within the vacant halls of his residence since he returned from Ryokan's manor an hour ago.

Still, for him, and his family, this was to be expected. Kanehira, the man with the distinction of having been an arch-priest for over twenty years, had since lost much of what he cared for the most. He had once had three children, but been cursed with the burden of having twins; beloved children which he would raise as his own, only to see them taken from him in what should've been the best years of their lives. He had experienced this destiny recently; it had been about a month since the failure of Itsuki and Mutsuki to complete the ritual that sustained the village, and kept it safe. And when Itsuki came back, he would never be the same. Whether because of the ritual itself, or the fact that he had failed to perform it properly, Itsuki's very soul had been devoured by shadow upon it's completion. Not in such a way that drove people to evil; Kanehira was given solace by the knowledge that Itsuki was still as kind-hearted as he had always been. Even so, Kanehira had known from the moment Ryokan returned Itsuki to him that he had lost his old son forever. He never smiled, or when he did, it was evident that the smile was still joyless in nature. His eyes were murky and void of hope. So great was his depression, that Itsuki's ebony hair had literally lost all of its color, turning to a blinding silvery white--a color that matched the state of his own mind. _Empty._

His sister was no better off. Chitose, Kanehira's youngest child, had been born cursed with her own life. She was nearly blind, and so frail that many of the villagers had once held the morbid belief that Chitose had been punished by the gods themselves, simply for daring to exist within the family that contained twins. She was shy, so shy that she trusted and revealed herself to almost no one, preferring instead to seek the enclosed spaces within the Tachibana house's many closets on the second floor. He rarely saw her, but Itsuki kept him updated on her physical and mental state. She had always trusted her brothers with all of her brittle heart, and been consequently dejected when Mutsuki "disappeared". Yet, through all of their hardship, his two remaining children had persisted in their love of one another--love that he, even as a father, couldn't fully comprehend.

Kanehira sighed heavily, and made his way to one of the tatami floors that laid near the entrance to his house, brushing curtains out of his way as he walked. He sat down with a groan, and contemplated what he really had left to live for. He wasn't married--his beloved wife had drowned in the river that flowed past his and the Kurosawa houses, a mere two days after the last crimson sacrifice. The heart-rending event had followed a terrible earthquake that sent her careening over the edge of the bridge that crossed the river, and it had often been a popular rumor among the village's population that she had actually been pulled to her death--purposefully dragged to a watery grave by the arms of the damned souls that hadn't been appeased.

Kanehira didn't want to believe that, and he simply couldn't let Itsuki believe it, but for him there was no denying that the old creed of the Hellish Abyss had been proven.

_Everything lived for it._

_Everything died for it._

* * *

Shuffling feet. The chime of a silver bell. Her own labored, terrified breathing. These were the sounds that kept Chitose company, as she laid in hiding within a crawl space underneath one of the Tachibana house's sitting rooms. There were no sights to keep her company, just a black chamber within her own head that surrounded her and threw her into self-doubt and sorrow. Even when her eyes were open, darkness pursued her with vigor.

_Knock, knock, knock...._

Chitose gasped and shuffled hastily toward the back of the crawl space that she had crammed herself into, squirming and squealing as she forced herself as far back as she could go.

"Chitose, are you in there? It's me, Itsuki."

Chitose's fragile heart skipped a beat; a product of surprise and joy. Her soft face brightened a little, and she scurried forward and slowly slid the door to the crawl space open, her bell chiming as she did so. He was there, greeting her, their smiles equally soft and equally shy.

"Hi, Itsuki. How were Yae and Sae, and their parents? Did you have a good time at the Kurosawa house?"

Itsuki's twinkling eyes slowly closed, as he tried to picture the events of that morning. _His_ booming voice charged to the forefront of Itsuki's thought.....

_"if YOU hadn't failed YOUR ritual...."_

Itsuki shuddered, his eyes closing even tighter. Even in her nearly blind state, Chitose was capable of detecting his unease.

"What's wrong, Itsuki?"

Itsuki quickly snapped out of his flashback, and his eyes rested upon Chitose's face again. He knew that Chitose depended on him for strength, which only made what he was about to say seem even more awkward.

"Chitose, would you mind very much if I joined you in there?"

A luminescent sparkle swam through Chitose's eyes. It overjoyed her--the prospect of having trustworthy company to share within her hiding area. But she still couldn't shake the feeling that something about him wasn't right.

"Why do you want to join me, Itsuki?"

Itsuki's head raced with the thoughts of what Ryokan had said earlier that morning. But it wasn't his harsh words that truly disquieted his mind, it was the knowledge of what they could mean. If Ryokan wouldn't go back on his word, and allow Yae and Sae to live, Itsuki would have to.......

"I just need your company right now, Chitose. I have a lot to think about." Itsuki said softly. She could hear his voice wavering. "I know there's not much space in there, but if you could make some room...."

He was cut off when Chitose took his hand and tugged at it, beckoning him inside. She gave him a reassuring smile; both of them were a little enraptured that Chitose would be comforting Itsuki for a change. He deserved it--after being so kind to her. From the simple warmth of his presence each morning, to the small bell that he had given her, so that he would always know where he could find her, Itsuki was all that she could ever ask for.

It took some effort, but after scrunching around in the confined space, Itsuki and Chitose were able to get comfortable. They spent what seemed like hours simply huddled together in the darkness, resting their heads against each other and embracing the love they shared as brother and sister. However, nothing that they did could command time, and they were eventually taken out of their peace by the muffled sounds of a conversation in the distance.

Chitose and Itsuki could tell by their voices that two men were journeying up the steps to the tatami-floored sitting room that they were hidden under. One of the men sounded like their father, Kanehira, but the other was much less comforting. Aged and deep, the voice terrified both of them.

"Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Kanehira." Ryokan said courteously. Itsuki heard depression in his voice; the Ceremony Master hadn't forgotten that morning either.

"Don't be ridiculous, Ryokan. You and I both know very well that you don't need my permission to meet with me." Kanehira said lightly. He didn't seem afraid of being offensive, but it was understandable. The two men had been great friends for over two decades.

Their voices were getting louder and clearer. Itsuki could already tell that they would be meeting and talking right above the crawl space that he was buried in. But....maybe that was something that Itsuki should want.

"Come on, Itsuki! Let's get out of here!" Chitose whimpered. He had forgotten that she never wanted to be anywhere near house guests, especially when it was the Ceremony Master himself. Still, Itsuki wanted to hear what Ryokan had to say.

"You go on, Chitose. I'll come and find you later." Itsuki said reassuringly. Chitose frowned, and she looked ready to try and pull him out of the crawl space herself. But Itsuki gave her a warm smile, and Chitose eventually accepted his choice. She scurried off, walking clumsily through the nearest hallway without another word.

Through the thinly padded flooring, Itsuki could hear everything that would be said above him. He heard the creaking of a wooden door that signaled the entrance of the two men, and heard the sound of bending tatami that told him the men had sat down. Itsuki steadied himself, calmed his breathing, and put an ear to the top of the crawl space, only to hear the last thing that he wanted to.

"Before we start, Ryokan, do you mind if I take a quick look under the crawl space? My youngest daughter hides under there often, and I'd like to make sure that our conversation goes undisturbed." Itsuki heard Kanehira say.

"Well, I don't hear anything underneath the floor. But sure, if you think it best." Ryokan replied. He hadn't seen Chitose since the day of her birth, but Kanehira had told him plenty about her.

Itsuki heard the slow, dragging footsteps of his father as he descended the few stairs leading to the crawl space. Panicking, Itsuki forced himself as far back into the confined area as he could go. He knew that it was too late to make a run for it--Ryokan would see him, and then.....he would be suspicious.

Itsuki held his breath as the door leading into the crawl space slowly creaked open, flooding half of the compassed area with the dim light of the room's lamps and candles. He tried to stay in the shadows, compressing himself so firmly against the opposite wall that he felt unable to breathe. Kanehira stuck his head inside the crawl space, but pulled it back out just as quickly without looking to his side, much to Itsuki's relief. He had assumed that, if Chitose had been in the storage area underneath the room, she would've come darting out and away from him as soon as he opened it. He had no reason to suspect that Itsuki would be in hiding.

Meanwhile, Ryokan diverted his gaze away from Kanehira, and toward the room that he was sitting in. The raised tatami room was quite elegant, albeit slightly cramped. There were a few alcoves lining the walls with antiques, decorations, and books and tomes; no doubt some of Kanehira's study materials. At the center of the tatami floor, a small, circular table with a flower engraved into its surface stood. There were likenesses of crimson butterflies etched into many of his decorations.

"Okay, we've got privacy, Ryokan." Kanehira called from a small distance away, ascending the few steps that led back to the raised tatami room and sitting back down on a small cushion near the circular table. He took his small court hat off, and the veil that obscured his face along with it, revealing a visage lined with Sanskrit markings; wards rightfully meant to protect him against any curses that might seek to beset him.

"This may sound strange coming from me, Kanehira, but I've been having some trouble executing my duties as of late." Ryokan said, his head slightly lowered.

"How so? I understand that these years haven't been some of our best, but quality of leadership is relative. If you've made the best of a bad situation, what right does anyone have to doubt you?" Kanehira replied, confused.

"Because I've failed at the one task that no one in this village can ever be forgiven for failing at: preparing the twins for their destiny." Ryokan gazed at one of the crimson butterfly paintings adorning the wall. It was easier to look away from his friend.

"Ah, yes, of course. I figured from the way Itsuki was acting....."

Ryokan's eyes flicked back to Kanehira. Suddenly, he was alert and a little worried; his slightly panicked look was a clear sign of that.

"What did Itsuki tell you?" Ryokan said, looking shamed.

"I figured from his expression this morning that someone had been letting off steam in your house. Don't worry--I understand your frustrations completely." Kanehira added the last part hastily, not wanting Ryokan's self-doubt to increase.

Ryokan gave Kanehira a rueful look before he fully elaborated on what had happened that morning.

"You must understand, old friend, that we are at the crossroads of life and death. The Abyss has seen too many sacrifices fail, and soon it's patience will be gone. You of all people probably know that...."

"Ryokan...," Kanehira interrupted, "...with all respect, I would prefer that we not discuss that." Kanehira heard her voice in his head, choking on the icy depths of the river and calling out to him.

Ryokan nodded understandingly, and continued with a fearful expression.

"Well, in any case, I've begun to fear that the Hellish Abyss won't give us another chance to repay our debt. It will overflow and destroy us all before the time for another sacrifice comes." Ryokan hung his head in complete shame. "And even if the Abyss waits a thousand lifetimes for the next sacrifice to come, how am I supposed to make Yae understand the true importance of her life, and Sae's?

Kanehira looked at Ryokan and spoke as if the truth was obvious.

"By telling them what you just told me! Yae probably thinks herself nothing but a pawn in a larger world; not understanding how vital she and Sae really are. If you can merely reassure her of her importance, then...."

_"ah...choo"_

"What was that!?" Ryokan straightened up immediately, anxious. Underneath the floor, Itsuki froze, cursing his stupidity and lack of control. Kanehira frowned, and he contemplated a more thorough search of the crawl space.

Time passed. No other sound came. Eventually, Ryokan and Kanehira looked back at each other, the noise forgotten.

"Change her mind, Ryokan," Kanehira stated compassionately, putting a hand on Ryokan's shoulder, "not with reason or logic, but with compassion. And not as a Ceremony Master, but as a father."

Ryokan thought his friend's advice over. It made him feel a little more optimistic, but that was only one of his problems. Still, it was a good start, and for it he was grateful.

"Thank you, Kanehira." Ryokan stated, standing up along with his friend. "As always, you have proven yourself a wiser man than I."

Kanehira chuckled at Ryokan's words. "Well, Ryokan, I've always held the belief that we must suffer before we can see the world for what it really is. In fact, I believe that was your philosophy as well, am I right?"

Ryokan didn't answer, but simply smiled at his friend. Without another word, Ryokan and Kanehira departed the room, headed for the house's exit. Confident that they were out of sight and earshot, Itsuki emerged from the crawl space, relieved to breathe the open air. He gazed at the wall above him, the same painting that Ryokan had stared at, and worried of what would come of what he had just heard.

* * *

It was the afternoon. For what had seemed like hours, Yae had been standing in the garden atrium not far from the great hall where the fight had broken out earlier, passing the time by gazing forlornly up at the sky. She had repeatedly choked back tears, her urge to cry for the fate of her dear sister, a fate that she felt was unavoidable.

"Did I ever tell you about your uncle, Yae?" A deep voice called from behind. Yae gave a small yelp and whirled around to see her father at the opposite end of the small atrium, gazing at her lovingly and looking sheepish. He walked over to her side and stared up with her, where a few lonely butterflies were dancing against the clear skies. They were crimson butterflies, the revered guardians of the village, and also painful reminders to both Ryokan and Yae.

"I don't talk about him too much. His name was Hikaru, and he was my younger brother, and my greatest love--even greater than your mother."

Ryokan paused to steal a glance at Yae, who was still pretending that he wasn't there. That wouldn't entice him to give up.

"I used to be like you, Yae. Young, compassionate, hopeful. I thought that my life at Hikaru's side would never end. We would continue to spend our days free of care, playing in the same fields that I spent time in with your mother so many decades later. We would grow up together and share all our memories. We would be together....forever."

Ryokan paused again. That word.....forever. It had always had such a diverse meaning in his village, and Ryokan had often contemplated whether or not "forever" was a real thing. Was it attainable, or was it fantasy? He had, in all his decades of living, seen one thing that wasn't temporary, and he obediently lived to serve it, just like Yae and Sae did.

"And, father, is he one of them?" Yae finally spoke, no emotion discernible in her tone. She pointed a slender, feminine finger up at the few butterflies fluttering lazily in the sky. From their distance, the butterflies seemed as red sparks that refused to extinguish themselves, unrelenting in their journey through the clouds.

"Like I said, Yae, I _was_ like you." Ryokan replied without a real answer. Yae looked away from the sky, and he could see the sorrow in her eyes that she was attempting to hide from him. "But then I turned fifteen, and my father revealed to me and Hikaru our true destiny. For months afterward, I wanted nothing more than to flee, to take my dear brother with me, to run away into the forest and never look back. But..."

"So why didn't you!?" Yae interrupted, her gaze now compassionate and remorseful. "If you really loved your brother, you should've fought for him until his, and your, last breath."

"Be assured Yae--I wanted to. I know you thought that I was able to just do away with my own brother without a second thought, but I loved him more than you will ever know."

"So what changed your mind, then?" Yae spoke softly and sorrowfully, feeling ashamed of herself, as Ryokan did.

"Everything, Yae. The village, its people, their hopes, their dreams. Everything that would've died without our sacrifice. Me and my brother had been out walking one day, when we found our way up to Misono Hill, the area where the first rituals of the crimson festival are carried out. When we found ourselves on that hill for the first time, on the edge of the forest that we could've tried to escape through, we turned away from its borders and saw all that we would be leaving in darkness."

Tears began to stream down Yae's cheeks. Ryokan knew she was beginning to realize how important her duty was. But she was still doubtful.

"I know how you feel, Yae. You're scared, you're confused, and you don't want to kill your sister. I wish I could tell you that we can prevent what this year will bring, and that there was another way. We cannot, and there is not. You may think that your sacrifice serves no purpose, Yae, but you can save so many people. Hundreds of lives, for just one."

Yae broke out into sobs, compelling Ryokan to move closer and put an arm around her, trying to comfort her. When she spoke, her words were choked and desperate.

"But father, it isn't just one life, it's my _sister's_ life! When we were young, I made Sae a promise that I would never leave her--that we would be together forever! Even if she is willing to perform her ritual, how can I break that promise to her!?"

Ryokan closed his eyes, almost weeping as well. "You can because you must. To keep the Hellish Abyss from spreading into the world, you must be willing to give up that person which you cherish more than any other, as I was."

Yae looked into Ryokan's eyes, and hers were shimmering from crying.

"Father, I promise...this is the last time I'll ever say this. One last time, and you'll never hear me complain again. But please, father, don't make me kill Sae."

Ryokan turned away. He couldn't give her the answer that she so desperately wanted to hear.

"I'm sorry, Yae, but the power of the Abyss is absolute. Promise me, Yae.....promise me, that at year's end, you'll be ready to perform your duty."

Yae muffled a sob. Deep within her conscience, at that very moment, a decision, a commitment, was made, but her face didn't betray her thoughts. She looked back at Ryokan and nodded dutifully.

"Alright, father. I'll be the village's next sacrifice."

Ryokan couldn't stifle a smile. He had finally succeeded in his most important duty.

As the two stood there in mournful silence, the flutter of crimson wings disturbed them. The butterflies that had been observing father and daughter from afar had flown down into the atrium to play amongst the bamboo plants that stood in the atrium's center, and some of them were mere feet from Ryokan and Yae's faces.

"Strange, I've never seen them this close before." Yae said, beside herself in awe of the magnificent creatures flying before her.

Ryokan wished his daughter good-bye as the butterflies swirled around him.

"Go find Sae and spend time with her, Yae. These winter days are precious." Yae nodded and strolled off, leaving Ryokan standing alone in the atrium. Alone, except for one little butterfly that had flown closer to Ryokan, rather than departing as the others did, and landed on his nose. Ryokan's mouth went agape, his eyes gradually widening as he worked out exactly which butterfly this one was.

"......Hikaru!?"

* * *

Yae broke into a run when she reached the ornate bridge that crossed the Minakami river between the Kurosawa house, and the rest of the village. She kept running until she found Sae and Itsuki, who had been waiting in the sunlight that bathed Misono Hill in a golden glow. She didn't say a word when she arrived to meet her sister and friend; for them, the look on her face, sad and hopeless, said it all.

As the three teenagers stared into the forest's edge, away from the village, Yae looked over to Itsuki and nodded her head; an ominous, decisive gesture which Itsuki returned. Their meeting came and went briefly without a single word, but then no words were needed. All they had needed was Yae's confirmation that Ryokan wouldn't change, and now they all knew what they would have to do.

* * *

Ryokan never did remember to apologize for his behavior that morning, but his family forgot it regardless. After that day, the Kurosawas and Tachibanas simply went about their daily business. It wasn't until two weeks had past that Itsuki and Ryokan again found themselves in each other's company--ironically in the same situation they had been last time. It was a bright yet overcast morning, with the sun's rays of light filtering through the clouds onto the stately roof of the Kurosawa household, and Itsuki had once again been invited by Sae to enjoy breakfast with them.

Ryokan surveyed the great hall that morning with confusion. Since breakfast had started, Yae, Sae, and Itsuki had all seemed a bit apprehensive. Should he have apologized for the argument that ruined that morning two weeks ago?

Ryokan tried to divert his thought away from his worries. As he ate slowly, Ryokan glanced over at his wife, who was calm as ever. She had always been a calming sight.

"Excuse me, master, but you have a visitor."

Ryokan turned his head slowly to face the man that was standing in the doorway. Through one of the folding screens that wreathed the meeting area, he could see one of his servants staring at him.

"Well, send him in then." Ryokan stated curtly, waving his hand to gesture that the servant should depart. The servant heeded his gesture and walked briskly off, only to be replaced in the doorway by none other than Kanehira.

"Sorry to disturb you, Ryokan, but I came to...."

Kanehira was crudely interrupted by a low rumble that shook the entire mansion. It started softly, but then intensified as Ryokan felt the ground shift beneath him. The Hellish Abyss was stirring...again.

"Get down!" Ryokan shouted, and his family, as well as Itsuki and Kanehira, responded--trying their best to shield their heads as the folding screens and walls twisted and warped all around them. Ryokan growled with grief; he had never worked out an earthquake plan for this part of his house. There was no furniture to hide under, nothing to protect them should the ceiling collapse.

Yae and Sae huddled together, screaming intermittently. Trying his best to act as the friend that he considered himself to be, Itsuki threw himself on top of them both in a desperate attempt to shield them from harm. All around them, plates and glasses clattered and shattered, and shards of wood fell from the ceiling to puncture the tatami floor below them. Fortunately, none saw their way to the head of anyone present. From his fetal position, Ryokan heard amongst the rumble of the earthquake the sound of something spilling, followed by a scream.

Eventually, the seismic shock subsided, and the room was calm again. The ceiling had been shaken up, but it had not collapsed, save for a couple of beams that had fallen away from the center of the room. No one was hurt, but they were all quivering in servile fear, especially the youngest three, who were still crumpled in a heap on the floor, refusing to leave the safety of each other's embrace. Eventually, Sae found the strength to rise from the ground, struggling to keep her balance, but eventually becoming stable.

As Ryokan surveyed the damage, he heard something that chilled his blood and froze his movement.

_"You can't hide from me, father."_

The voice--a cold, indiscernible hiss--came from nowhere in particular. Ryokan nearly tripped trying to gather himself. Once he was up, his eyes darted around the wrecked room, waiting for an attack that did not come.

"Dad, are you alright?"

Ryokan swiveled around to see Sae standing in the dead center of the great hall, only to have his heart skip a beat. Something about her wasn't right. She was struggling to stay steady, and she was deathly pale from the shock of what she had just experienced. The red sauce that Ryokan and Kiyomi had been using to flavor their breakfast had spilled out of its pot and onto Sae, and her elegant white kimono was streaked and splotched with crimson. To anyone else, she was just a girl with food spilled on her. Ryokan, however, was made uneasy by her presence. He couldn't name it, but something about her, at this moment, sent an unearthly chill down his spine.

"Dad! Are you alright? Can you hear me!?" Sae repeated, her voice laden with anxiety. She was beginning to fear that Ryokan had lost his hearing, for whatever reason.

Ryokan listened intently to her voice. It was soft, warm, affectionate, and her pale sheen was beginning to dissipate. He breathed a sigh of relief and nodded to her to answer her question. It seemed that what Ryokan had just experienced had been a product of his imagination.

Probably.

Ryokan took one last look around, his gaze resting on each person present, from Itsuki and Yae sitting on the floor together, to Kiyomi standing right in front of him, to make sure that no one was hurt. Once satisfied, he turned his attention back to his friend.

"So, why exactly did you say you were here, Kanehira?"

"Ah, I had just come to retrieve Itsuki. I think it's time he came home."

Itsuki gave Kanehira a brisk nod and left Yae's arms to walk to his father. As he prepared to leave, he noticed the suddenly glum expression on Sae's face.

"Oh, don't worry, Sae. I'll see you later. I have to leave now anyway; there's something that I need to se...."

Itsuki gasped, his face going pale. A chill shot down his spine--the horrible feeling that people get at their core when they make a terrible mistake. He had slipped up.

"...um, never mind. It doesn't matter." Itsuki stammered, trying desperately to hide his error. He regained his vacant stare almost immediately, knowing how easily Ryokan could read faces, but it was still too late. Kiyomi and Kanehira had remained indifferent to his suspicious words, but Ryokan's attention had been incontrovertibly gained, and he was staring straight at him.

"Oh, please, do tell us what your day's tasks consist of. In fact, maybe one of my servants could give you a helping hand." Ryokan rationalized an excuse to prod at what Itsuki had been on the verge of saying. Tension filled the air for the next few moments as Itsuki felt the unnerving, almost withering effect of Ryokan's gaze. Yae and Sae quickly exchanged nervous glances; they knew that no one would leave the room until Itsuki fessed up about what he was planning to do that day.

Itsuki continued to stand in overwrought silence, beads of sweat startling to trickle down his brow. He needed a distraction. He _would_ get one, but not even he would be happy to hear of it.

"MASTER! Something terrible is happening underground!" Another veiled priest cried in Ryokan's direction. He had barged in from the opposite doorway. He heaved and bent over, out of breath as Ryokan approached him.

"Your powers of perception are uncanny, Mr. Osaka." Ryokan said in a condescending and slightly irritated tone. "As fascinated as I am by the fact that you felt the exact same earthquake that we just did, I was having a conversation here before you so rudely..."

"It's not the earthquake, sir! It's the mourners; something's wrong with them--all of them!"

Ryokan instantly forgot about whatever it was that Itsuki had been on the brink of saying. His eyes wide with panic, Ryokan rushed past the Osaka priest that had delivered the news, bound for the underground passage's entrance at the opposite side of his estate.

Itsuki stared down at the hem of his white kimono, distraught. He didn't like the idea of capitalizing on the events of such a tragic morning; any issue involving the blind, crude, terrifying guards of the Hellish Abyss that were referred to as mourners was bound to be in an equally terrifying way. Still, Itsuki had to use the opportunity that he had been given. After a few moments to allow the other parents and priest to clear out of the room, Itsuki looked over to Yae and spoke.

"I have the letter for Ryozo ready. I'll send it out now."

* * *

Yep, it's a cliffhanger. Because I'm evil like that.

Comments will be appreciated.


	10. Chapter 10: Ryokan's Revellation

Thanks again for the review, Nanumi! Sorry updates have been taking awhile-my chapters have gotten a lot longer and more complicated than they originally were at the beginning. Hope you (and any other readers) enjoy this one!

Standard disclaimers still apply.

* * *

Chapter 10: Ryokan's Revelation

It was dark; it was always dark within the void space that Ryokan charged blindly through. He hated the place-always had, even more so now. The curving tunnel would've been pitch black, were it not for the small candles lining the stone walls, and even then all they did was barely illuminate the staircases that brought the passage deeper into the gloom, and created macabre shadows that danced on the walls like so many hungry wraiths that probably dwelled within the place. The winding tunnel had always had an air of pain and agony present, and with good reason. At it's end laid two separate rooms-both ancient, mysterious, horrible.

Of all the locations and structures in All Gods village, the stone passageway that lead to the Hellish Abyss was one of the very few for which no records existed. It had simply been there since the beginning of the village itself, twisting down into the earth's very foundations. Normally, the lengthy passage was guarded at all times. On the surface, veiled priests took shifts watching over the massive doorway that led into it. Underground, however, the dank passage was patrolled by what many people saw as less than human. The mourners-they had been average people once, the criminals of All Gods. This place was their punishment; anyone who violated the village's law was forcibly blinded and made to serve, at all times, as guards within one of the least desirable work settings on earth. They were never allowed above ground, and were often treated cruelly by the veiled priests that oversaw them. They all had a similar appearance: gaunt, clad in very little clothing, and pale as death itself. Some of the older ones were so unhealthy that their teeth and hair were falling out. Even on the best of days, it wasn't uncommon to hear the twisted screams of one mourner that had finally had enough.

Today wasn't like that. The air was filled with a terrible wailing that intensified as Ryokan came closer. _One_ mourner wasn't screaming, they _all were_, and this time it wasn't the cruel treatment or lack of light that caused it: it was something even worse.

Ryokan eventually exited the attenuated passage and reached the final chamber of the underground network, and beheld a terrible sight. It was a cavernous void that contained nothing save for three large torches that illuminated the room and, of course, a massive, bottomless pit at its center. The Hellish Abyss: gateway to the afterlife, and tormentor of the village.

But that wasn't the sight that drew Ryokan's attention: it was the mourners in front of him. Many were laying crumpled at the walls of the cavern, killed by self-inflicted head injuries. A few were still alive, rolling around on the ground, scratching at their heads and moaning or screaming for no discernible reason. Ryokan remembered there being more mourners than this, which meant a few were also unaccounted for.

"Oh, master Kurosawa, you've arrived..." a tired voice called at him. Ryokan turned slowly to see one of the "lesser" veiled priests: one who had not come from one of the village's power-holding families. The man's veil had been torn, and Ryokan could see a black eye and several bloody scratch marks adorning his face. He was clutching at his side, stemming the blood flow from another gash he had collected during the apparent riot. There were other priests in the room as well, all looking as clueless as the one who stood before Ryokan, and many bearing similar injuries. The sharp ends of their staves were tipped with blood. It appeared as if the mourners had attempted to do more than simply kill themselves.

"What atrocity happened here?" Ryokan demanded, attempting to keep his disgust from showing.

"We're not quite sure, master. In the wake of the earth's upheaval this morning, the mourners simply lost their minds." The injured priest replied. "In fact, this isn't all of them. When we lost control, most of the mourners simply elected to take the quickest path to death available..."

The priest's voice trailed off. He started to motion behind him, toward the Hellish Abyss, but was cut off by a wailing, almost inhuman shriek that emanated from the hallway that connected the Abyss' chamber to an adjacent one. It was getting closer...fast.

"Master, look out! I couldn't stop him!" A panicked priest called from the adjacent chamber. True to his word, Ryokan looked on as one final mourner burst forth from the passage, barreling in his direction and flailing its arms wildly. The old man stepped to one side and allowed the priests to take care of the menace, but the mourner ran past Ryokan and everyone else before they could get the chance. The creature continued to ignore them as it approached the edge of the Hellish Abyss, and didn't stop until it had disappeared into the pit's endless depths.

Ryokan and the priests, who had momentarily stopped their task of cleaning up the bodies, all stared at the pit in disbelief. Ryokan himself was the most enthralled, for he saw something in the image that the others didn't. It was hovering above the Abyss; barely visible, nearly undetectable, and yet obviously present. The area above the pit was slightly darker than the rest of the already pitch black room, and Ryokan knew that it confirmed all of his worst fears.

It was an ancient force that had existed for as long as men had. Literally named "darkness" by the people who lived in veneration and fear of it, the raven vigor that seeped slowly out of the Hellish Abyss was the collective consciousness of all those in the world who had ever died in the throes of misery and heartbreak; those who had lived the worst lives, or suffered the worst deaths. They were the ones who found power in their demise, insisting past their own deaths on remaining in the world of the living to see their suffering mirrored in the eyes of others. The gods, not seeing fit to allow these spirits to roam the living world, opened a rift in the earth, more than one in fact, to draw them in and imprison them for eternity. According to legend, that is why the village had been named "All Gods"-to honor those who created the Abyss for which the town existed.

But the spirits didn't stay dead. Although the Hellish Abyss unraveled their minds and shredded their souls, their thoughts and whims still remained. Even with the rituals performed in All Gods to keep their thirst for blood satisfied, the collective hatred and malice that dwelled within the void was never truly quenched. It had always been in the stagnant air of this cavern, and its increasing disturbances only proved to Ryokan what he had not wanted to believe. The Repentance was coming, and even he was powerless to stop it.

"It's not enough time." Ryokan echoed his own thoughts in a dry, almost breathy tone of voice. He didn't hear Kanehira approach him from behind.

"Ryokan...," Kanehira stuttered, trying to come up with a reassuring statement, "could you not simply have Yae and Sae perform the ritual before the Repentance comes? You had told me that you finally convinced Yae..."

"As I have, Kanehira...as I have." Ryokan snapped, cutting him off. "But...the crimson sacrifice ritual is not as simple as choosing to perform it whenever you desire. It must be executed, if at all, on the _third_ year of the decade-_no_ other year is acceptable. Itsuki and Mutsuki were our last chance...our last hope. And now, with their sacrifice a failure..."

Ryokan stopped talking. Kanehira lowered his head in shame as fear drained the color from his face. For that moment that they stood there, wreathed by other veiled priests cleaning up the remains of the mourners, the two men felt alone. Feeling that the only destiny now laying before them was the cold embrace of darkness, Ryokan and Kanehira felt as if they were without help.

They were wrong.

Something small materialized on the top of Ryokan's court hat. A bug; Ryokan quickly raised his hand to crush it, but stopped cold when his hand rose to the level of his forehead. Gazing intently, he could clearly distinguish a faint red glow bouncing off of his dried hand, and it didn't take him long to realize what it was.

"Hikaru." Ryokan mouthed silently to himself. What was his butterfly doing down here? As he pondered the answer to that question, the butterfly answered for him by gliding off of his court hat and sailing away from him, heading toward the tunnel that led back to the light of the surface world. Without a word, Ryokan began following it, his eyes glazed over almost in a trance-like state. Kanehira's attention was caught by the audible shuffling of Ryokan's kimono on the ground, and he followed Ryokan, calling after him in a futile attempt to find out where he and the butterfly were headed. Eventually, Kanehira became silent as well, and for their entire trek back into the house, and through its winding hallways, the silence was only broken by the creaking of Ryokan's aged floorboards under the weight of their feet, and also by the occasional sounding of an ethereal chime that didn't appear to have any source. Finally, the butterfly reached its destination.

It was Ryokan's study-a modestly sized room lit by several candles and amber lamps that did their job only marginally. With the exception of a couple of odd decorations lining the walls-a suit of armor here and a mask there-the only furnishing in the room was an old desk made from hiba tree wood, and several shelves lining the walls with books upon books; All Gods' most important literature collected throughout time. As Ryokan and Kanehira filed into the room, the butterfly that they had been following fluttered up to the center of the room, coming to rest near the top of one final bookshelf. This one wasn't like the others; it was circular, and it was responsible for housing the most important books in Ryokan's collection. Some were there simply for age; crumbling, almost illegible books with moldy spines that had originally been in the possession of the first Ceremony Master. Others were listed for importance; books such as the "five tomes" that summarized the knowledge of such macabre unspeakables as the Hellish Abyss, referred to merely as * in almost all literature, and the rituals which satisfied its appetite. Others were illicit materials; books collected by the women who had ventured into the outside world to entice kusabi sacrifices back to the village.

Yet, as Ryokan approached the bookcase and eyed the butterfly's movements carefully, it tucked its wings in and crawled along the bookshelf to rest upon one that was none of these things. It was a relatively new text, collected during his father's reign, and it didn't appear special to him at all. What was it even doing on this shelf? Had his father intended for it to be kept there?

The butterfly flapped its wings and flexed its antennae impatiently, willing Ryokan to investigate for himself. Not seeing any reason not to, Ryokan pulled the book off of the shelf and examined its front cover. A thin layer of dust, which Ryokan promptly blew away, coated a grainy picture of a mansion, built to look almost like a Shinto shrine, shrouded by the cloak of a forest engulfed in nightfall. The mansion looked huge, easily twice the size of the Kurosawa estate by the appearance of its front, and there was a plaque barely visible above the double doors leading into its depths. A plaque bearing the family name-_Himuro_.

Ryokan glanced back up at the butterfly that sat atop the bookcase, to have his look returned only by the light, almost playful beating of its wings. Eventually looking away, Ryokan took a seat at the desk and flipped through the book's pages, still not sure of what he was supposed to see in it. However, as he skimmed the text and, more intriguingly, the pictures contained within, the book's importance, and the reason behind the butterfly's actions, became clearer. Every few pages explained something new to him. He read the brief background of a certain _Himuro mansion, _located not far from his own village, and it became clear what he had seen in the picture on the cover. He read the history of the family that lived there, and it became clear how they bore similarity to him. Finally, he read about the rope shrine maiden, and glimpsed a picture of a beautiful young woman with ropes binding her arms, legs, and neck, and it became clear to him what he had seen in his dream, why he had dreamed it, and what he would have to do.

Ryokan looked slowly up from the book, traces of optimism evident on his face. After staring briefly at the butterfly, his facial expression thanking his brother's spirit wordlessly, Ryokan closed the book and swiveled around to face Kanehira in one swift motion. Kanehira, who had been standing silent the entire time, nearly jumped back in shock, not only due to Ryokan's swift movement but also due to the look on his face. He was...smiling!

"I think I have the answer to our problem, Kanehira!" Ryokan got straight to the point, remaining indifferent to the look of surprise on Kanehira's face. Eventually, though, Ryokan realized that his friend was baffled by his exuberant attitude, and he regained his reserved personality with no delay.

"Kanehira, I've often implied to you in our discussions that I could not orchestrate and carry out a crimson sacrifice at the end of this year, even if I wanted to. Have I ever endeavored to mention why?" Ryokan couldn't stifle his sense of optimism, and Kanehira noted that his eyes were still slightly wide with excitement. When Kanehira shook his head, Ryokan nodded in understanding and continued.

"Well, then let me ask you another question, Kanehira...bear with me if you would. Have you ever heard of Hallowe'en before?"

Kanehira couldn't stop his mouth from going agape. He had heard of the holiday before, but it was a product of western culture. Ryokan didn't favor the discussion of western beliefs within his village's borders, so why would he of all people mention it?

"I know that it's strange that I should bring it up, but Hallowe'en is a holiday that has been emerging in the western world. It has its roots in a Gaelic festival called 'Samhain' that was practiced by pagans on October 31st-a seemingly pointless day on the calendar. However, to them, the importance of the last day of October is grounded in their belief that the boundary between our world and the afterlife would grow particularly thin on that day."

Ryokan paused. To answer Kanehira's unspoken question of where he had learned all of this, Ryokan pulled another book off of the shelf and handed it to Kanehira. It was adorned with pagan drawings, and obviously a member in the series of forbidden books that came into Ryokan's possession. It seemed as if the Ceremony Master wasn't following his own laws.

Eventually, Kanehira gave the book back to Ryokan and turned his attention toward the matter at hand.

"Sir, with all respect, I'm still unclear on the meaning of your words. It's an interesting book, but what does it have to do with us?"

Ryokan smirked at his friend.

"Because, Kanehira, our understanding of the Hellish Abyss happens to be similar. We don't simply perform the crimson rituals during the third year-and _only_ that year-of each decade because we feel like it. We do it because the first Ceremony Master discovered that the spirits that dwell within the Hellish Abyss would draw closer to the surface of the pit during that year. That, Kanehira, provides us with our one chance to make our appeasement. Try to perform the ritual at any other time, and the spirits simply will not heed you!"

Kanehira frowned. This new bit of information seemed simple enough, but it was decidedly not good news.

"But Ryokan, why should you be happy over that knowledge? It only affirms our imminent destruction."

Ryokan continued to smirk.

"Ha! Only because I initially thought it to be unpreventable! There _are_ special rites in existence that, when performed correctly, can be used to draw spirits out of hiding and into the open, and if I perform them, we will be able to carry out the crimson sacrifice _immediately_. Alas, I don't know how to perform such rites; it was for this reason that I mourned for our village prematurely."

Ryokan's mood soured momentarily, but he soon looked back up at Kanehira. He took the Himuro book and handed it to his friend, who flipped through it while Ryokan continued to speak.

"But I finally understand that this is why I have been having nightmares of that woman. She was dressed in a white kimono and had ropes that bound all of her limbs, just like the women portrayed in the pictures in this book. It would also routinely take place in the same dank, underground location-referred to as the 'Hell Gate' in this book-not unlike our own Hellish Abyss."

Ryokan approached Kanehira, who looked up at him.

"Don't you see, Kanehira? It wasn't just a nightmare, or even a warning! It was a reminder that we're not alone in our quest to keep the darkness at bay. And perhaps this revelation also explains why Sengoku elected to keep this book in the most important shelves of the Kurosawa collection. He didn't know how to perform the special rites either, but he apparently knew that it might some day be important, because he left clues such as this book behind-so that other generations of ritual performers might help us."

Kanehira's face contorted into a worried expression. He was beginning to fear that he knew where this was going.

"And...what exactly does all of this mean?" He asked timidly. Ryokan removed his court hat, took Kanehira's hat and veil off of his head, and placed his own on Kanehira's head in its place.

"It means, my dear friend, that you are in charge of the village while I am gone."

* * *

A couple of notes:

1. The halloween stuff is based on the true history of the holiday.

2. I conceived the "special rites" idea because I needed a reason for Ryokan to be going on this journey, but I'm a little disappointed that I couldn't come up with something more original. Sorry if it seems lame, but I promise the next chapter will be better.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	11. Chapter 11: The Divided Master

Chapter 11: The Divided Master

Ryokan spent the next few days preparing tirelessly for his departure. As he had implied in his conversation with Kanehira, he wasn't intent on returning to All Gods until he had found a shrine that could provide him with the secret to manipulating spirits.

But Ryokan knew that he would have to be cautious throughout his journey. The world outside of the Minakami forest was changing rapidly and becoming more dangerous as people conceived new weapons and new means of rampant destruction. No one knew it better than Ayase Osaka, wife of the veiled priest of the Osaka house, whom Ryokan took the time to consult with before his departure. She had been one of the women sent into the world to find suitable kusabi sacrifices for the village, but had barely managed to come back with her life, much less any kind of ritual fodder. She had been severely injured by a gun-one of the new weapons that so terrified the villagers-and was very nearly crippled, condemning her to walk with a hunch for the rest of her life. Ryokan knew how terrible it could be; he had been there when the veiled priests prayed for her and removed the small metal sphere that had been lodged within her hip.

But Ryokan would not be deterred, and he continued to pack and prepare for his travels until the day on which he had made plans to leave. As he had guessed, Kanehira appeared at his house at the last possible moment to try to talk him out of it.

"Please, I beg you Ryokan, at least tell me _where_ you're going." Kanehira followed Ryokan through the Kurosawa manor as he gathered his things. It was manifest that he was upset. "It isn't the Himuro mansion that you're bound for, is it!"

"Surely you jest, old friend." Ryokan turned around and raised an eyebrow, making Kanehira blush with embarrassment. They both stopped near the house's front foyer, and Ryokan began rustling through his belongings, looking for something that he wanted to show Kanehira.

"Of course not." Ryokan continued. "I may be getting on in my years, but I'm no fool. Judging from what I've seen in my nightmares, it's more likely than not that the 'Hell Gate' of Himuro mansion has already overflowed, and if that's true, then I don't want to be anywhere within ten kilometers of it."

Ryokan finished rifling through his belongings and withdrew a book, about the same size as the Himuro one. He tossed it to Kanehira, who caught it and began examining the cover. It was emblazoned with the picture of a large mansion not unlike the Himuro one, but it had a strange, almost impossible blue tint to it, and it was shrouded in a depth of snowfall as well as one of darkness.

"However," Ryokan explained, "I found that book placed along with the first one. It details the existence of the Kuze manor-a shrine that lies to the far north of here. It's a long way, but the Kuze family has been in this 'practice' even longer than we have, and they're very well respected in the Mutsu region. Anyway, it could be our last chance."

Kanehira stared at Ryokan. His facial expression still communicated unease.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I should be on my way. I'll need to travel quickly if I am to make it to the shrine before the last snows of winter melt. It's already late February; I'm running out of time."

Ryokan neglected to mention why the weather's state even mattered, but Kanehira was wrought with doubt all the same. He looked at Ryokan's aging form and bit his lip nervously.

"Ryokan...I don't like this idea of yours. This isn't some small trip you're making. I am reading the map in this book, and it says that the Kuze shrine lies dozens of miles north of here. The rest of Japan has become dangerous and uninviting, and," Kanehira paused, shy about continuing to speak his mind, "I hate to admit it, but you're getting a touch old to be traveling alone."

Ryokan chuckled and patted his friend on the shoulder reassuringly.

"Heh, perhaps I am, Kanehira. But I will meet the Kuzes within their own shrine regardless, and I won't leave until..."

"...and that's another thing!" Kanehira showed unusual amounts of rudeness in cutting Ryokan off mid-sentence. He must've felt strongly indeed, to be defying the man who was, by all accounts, his master.

"How do you know that the Kuzes can even be trusted? If they're anything at all like us, then they won't be inclined to treat visitors favorably-at least not without their own selfish motives. You could be walking into a death sentence!"

Ryokan closed his eyes tightly and clenched his fists, the smile gone from his face. He had read enough about the graceless practices of the Kuzes beforehand to know that Kanehira's concerns were well founded. He would not be welcomed within the Kuze walls, especially if he failed to arrive before winter ended.

Yet, Kanehira's concerns were utterly meaningless, utterly pointless, utterly foolish. For all of the possible affronts to his very existence that he could face, at the hands of some random outsider or at the hands of the Kuzes themselves, it would still be worth it to stop the one great affront to his village now bearing down on them all. He _would_ gain what knowledge he needed from the Kuzes, whether they liked it or not.

"I understand your concerns, Kanehira, really I do. But none of that matters now. Even if something does happen to me, you once told me that we must suffer in order to achieve true enlightenment. Are you really telling me that you've given up on that conviction so easily?"

Kanehira shook his head grimly. He didn't answer Ryokan's question, but when the Ceremony Master tried to leave the foyer for the third time, he heard Kanehira's voice again, and it came solemnly.

"You know, Ryokan, we may be better arrayed to understand the world after we have suffered at its hands, but you can't benefit from that enlightenment if you die in the process. What of your wife and children-won't you miss them?"

Ryokan sighed deeply and answered as he walked toward the door leading out of his house.

"More than you will ever know, Kanehira. I'm going to say my goodbyes now, starting with you. Good luck, my friend; until I return, All Gods village is in your capable hands. Lead it wisely."

With that, Ryokan closed the door behind him, leaving Kanehira standing alone, feeling empty in an empty house.

* * *

Ryokan quickly found that he didn't have to walk far to find his family. As he set across Whisper bridge-the bridge connecting his house to the rest of the village-with his most important belongings packed away into a couple of suitcases, Ryokan saw his family standing at attention at its end, just in front of the large gate that signaled the beginning of his land. The gate was ajar, and Ryokan could glimpse the curious staring of other villagers on its opposite side who were hoping to bear witness to the moment.

None of his family members looked happy, but they did look supportive. All but one, anyway.

"I'm sorry...Kiyomi...Yae...Sae," Ryokan started, his expression rightfully sorrowful, "but I can't stay. The tide of ill fortune never changes until someone strives to change it. I am the leader of All Gods village; I must be that person."

At first, Kiyomi said nothing, and she didn't look into his eyes; couldn't bare to. It hurt her to think that Ryokan still thought himself a Ceremony Master first and a father second, and it hurt her worse to know that he might not live long enough for her to try to change it.

Feeling the awkward silence taking its toll on those present, Sae smiled warmly and stepped forward, holding a small stone in her hand.

"Be careful on your journey, dad. I know you'll make us all proud. I'll give Yae and Kiyomi enough love for both of us until you get back."

Before he could respond, Sae extended her arms and handed the small stone to Ryokan, who inspected its appearance. It was a small, polished hunk of mineral-a chrysocolla stone, judging by its blue-green hues.

When Ryokan looked back down, clearly confused, Sae's smile only grew.

"It's a spirit crystal, dad. I think they have the ability to inscribe themselves with the thoughts of the holder, so maybe me and Yae will be able to hear about your journey if you forget something. It's also just for good luck, so..." Sae trailed off, feeling suddenly shy.

"Thank you, Sae. It will never leave my side." Ryokan complimented her, compelling her to blush and smile once more. With that, he turned to Yae, who was staring at him intently.

"It's okay father." Yae started before Ryokan could even speak, perhaps anticipating that he would try to reassure her as well. "I won't try to hold you back from doing what you think is right. Take as much time in your travels as you need."

Yae bit her lip nervously and looked away when she had finished. She had chosen her words poorly, had sounded much too eager to have him away from the village. It caught his attention, and as he focused on her choice of words, he remembered what had happened a few days ago. Back in the great hall during breakfast time, Itsuki had been ready to say something, and he had seemed nervous, just like Yae was now. Could he be planning something?

Almost without his noticing, a soft, feminine hand reached towards him and maneuvered under his chin. It was Kiyomi, finally having found the courage to look at her husband's face, tilting his chin back to motivate him to return her sorrowful gaze. Looking into her tear-streaked eyes, Ryokan couldn't help but forget Itsuki, if only for a moment.

Feeling awkward, Ryokan tried to step back, but Kiyomi _wasn't_ going to let him go without a few words first. Before he could move too far, her arms folded around him tightly and drew him in. Ryokan could feel her forcefulness, her determination, and his mind became clear as a still wind as he waited for her to speak. Sensing that they might want to be alone, Yae and Sae excused themselves silently and ran back toward the house. Even the villagers who had been watching from the double doors had the decency to leave them in peace. The next few moments, for both Kurosawas, felt like time spent in an alternate reality that they could only wish to be true. The smell of flowers just starting to bloom, the sound of chirping birds and light gusts of wind, the heat of the sun and brilliance of the light upon them-these were the only distractions from their embrace.

Kiyomi leaned in toward him until their faces were almost touching, and found the bravery to speak to him one last time.

_"Come back, Ryokan...please...," _she choked back a sob, and focused as much affection as she could into her next gesture as her lips met his.

One kiss. A simple, soft kiss that shook and transformed the world at his feet. For just that one moment, that one fleeting moment, reality as Ryokan knew it faded away into a cloud of ash. The Hellish Abyss, the Kuzes, his problems-they all ceased to exist, replaced only by the smiling faces of his family, including his daughters.

That day, Ryokan was back with her, in the small golden fields outside of All Gods, loving her as he had done twenty years ago.

The world had stopped, and Ryokan Kurosawa, the master of Minakami, was lost in time.

* * *

By the time the bliss surging through Ryokan's person had finally worn off, he was shocked to see that he and his beautiful wife had already parted ways, and that he had started to head toward the route that would take him out of All Gods. But, as he continued to walk this path, he quickly found the crushing reality of the world bearing down on him once more. Now that he had sobered in the wake of the love that he had shared, all that Kiyomi had done to Ryokan's world reversed itself utterly. The Hellish Abyss, the Kuze shrine, all of his problems-they came back full force, and in their place, it was his family that began to fade away. Once again, the safety and continuation of the endless ceremony was his first sacred priority. His daughters, who he still loved, would be doomed to the crimson sacrifice at the end of the year-there would be no argument of this, not even from his own wife, who Ryokan suspected was less than supportive of letting her daughters go.

They were two separate sides of the whole of his personality, two halves that called him, beckoned to him, contending for his attention. At one side, his lighter incarnation-a loving, affectionate, proud father and husband with all that a person could ever want. At the other end, a darker manifestation that would do absolutely anything to achieve its ends. It had little sense of conscience or morality. It believed that might was always right, and that some goals were worth fighting for unconditionally. Not even torture and massacre were out of bounds-not for this side, the side of the Ceremony Master, a side born scarred in a suffering world.

So...which was he? A father, or a Ceremony Master? In any case, it was his darker side now influencing him, enticing him to focus on Itsuki's suspicious activity once more.

_"Don't worry, Itsuki, you will see me again. At any rate, I'm not going anywhere just yet, not until I've had a look into your thoughts and intentions. If you and Yae are hiding something from me, I'll find it, and END it!"_

Ryokan whirled around and began walking briskly away from the edge of the village toward Kanehira's house. He entered with no trouble and came to find the house deserted. Glad that he would not have to explain himself to anyone, Ryokan worked his way up to the second floor and navigated the hallways and tatami rooms until he came to the room that he was looking for.

"Itsuki's room." Ryokan muttered, reading the plaque above the door that led into the small room. Discourteously, Ryokan entered the room and began rifling around with the furniture, checking underneath his bed and in all the drawers of his cabinets, making sure to leave things as he had found them. He wasn't looking for much, just some evidence that would answer, once and for all, whether or not Itsuki was plotting against him. Eventually, he found what he was looking for; there were a few scraps of paper among all the others on his disordered desk, grouped together in the binding of a diary with the picture of a butterfly on it. Ryokan unfastened the cord tied around the book to hold it shut, and read what little there was to read.

The old man grumbled; he had really hoped to find more than this. The diary page was torn and very brief, but the rest of it was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't even written by Itsuki, but by Sae, his own daughter. It was a clearly written note from her, expressing her willingness to go through with the Crimson Sacrifice.

It gave him enough hope to put his mind at ease. He had forgotten the fortune he had been granted in the form of Sae's unflinching devotion to her duty as a twin. Itsuki and Yae's opinions, whatever they may be, would be irrelevant as long as Sae refused to discard her beliefs. If she made the decision to perform the ritual, which she would, then Yae would as well. She simply didn't have the willpower to defy the wishes of her dear sister.

Ryokan considered staying behind to read more of Itsuki's untidy notes, but he had to make time on his journey and be out of the forest before nightfall. That left him with a mere few hours; he couldn't afford to dawdle anymore. Envigored for the start of his journey, Ryokan set out and slammed Itsuki's door shut behind him. As he did so, the slamming of Itsuki's door shook the room slightly. It wasn't much, but it was enough to cause several more papers to fall off of the edge of Itsuki's desk and onto the tatami floor. They were also pieces of Sae's diary, and they told a different story then what the last piece had. Ryokan hadn't seen them when he investigated. In his near future, he would sorely wish that he had.

* * *

Ryokan Kurosawa stood motionless at the top of Misono Hill, overlooking his village with a sense of pride. At his back, a large, old torii gate stood stalwart at the village's border, with the only working path out of All Gods village at its rear. There had once been another, more dangerous path out of the village, one that Ryokan didn't often speak of, but it had been sealed shut by a mechanical lock decades ago. That left this one path, a path constantly guarded by veiled priests to ensure that no one left or entered the village without his direct approval.

As Ryokan took a few fateful steps toward the gate, he turned to glimpse the village once more and beheld an awe-inspiring site.

The entire village-every villager-was staring up at him reverently. Deciding to seize this moment, Ryokan drew his father's sword and held it high above his head, a symbol of victories to come. Much to his relief and excitement, his action was greeted by the roaring applause of the villagers below. They were still hopeful and, more importantly, still loyal to him.

_"I will return to All Gods and carry out my duties as the master of this land. I swear to you, Kiyomi, that I will do more than simply 'come back'._

_I will be victorious...for the village."_

Ryokan turned without another thought and walked through the torii gate, not stopping as he was absorbed into the forest, and into a brave new world.

* * *

Hope you liked it. A couple of notes:

1. I'm aware that, in the cannon game, the note by Sae seen in this chapter hadn't been written yet. That's a very small cannon alteration on my part.

2. Just so readers know, I'm _not_ planning on including Ryokan's journey to the Kuze shrine as a part of this story, since it's supposed to be more about the events of FFII. Instead, I'm planning to write it as a separate one shot, so if you've enjoyed my story, be sure to check out the next one, which will be the story of Ryokan's travels.

As always, comments and criticism will be greatly appreciated.


	12. Chapter 12: Itsuki's Plan

Thanks for reviewing, Fan of Games. I have answers to your questions about Chapter 11:

1. "Kuze Manor" is what the setting of FF3 was called before the disaster occurred. But yes, it is the place where the FF3 rituals took place. That is where Ryokan is headed because he thinks the Kuze family can help him.

(It should be Kuze **Shrine**, actually. Sorry about that.)

2. I'm not planning to write the one-shot until this story is finished, so it won't be out for a couple of months. Until then, I'll be continuing to update this story.

Also, there are some clues as to what happened to Ryokan in Chapter 13. Keep your eyes peeled when you get to that chapter ;)

xxXXxx

Chapter 12: Itsuki's Plan

The days that passed by gradually became weeks as Ryokan's absence continued. Eventually the remaining snow from winter melted and the forest grew lush and thick, as it had done every spring.

This year, however, the village itself remained dry and cold. Farm fields began to wither, and food reserves followed suit. There was no reason for why it was happening, no explanation. Most of the plants simply weren't growing back, and those that did were dully colored and depressing to behold. Even the soil was turning gray and becoming loose, and the people of All Gods village became fearful as they realized that their land was beginning to rot.

Their problems became worse when the summer approached. Aside of the blistering heat, the grim realization that Ryokan still hadn't returned also troubled the villagers. The date by which he had promised to return had come and gone. Even as more seasons passed and a new early winter brought relief from the heat, people were beginning to lose hope that the Ceremony Master was even alive, much less returning to the village.

All of the villagers missed him dearly. Except for a few.

xxXXxx

"Take a long look, Sae. Remember this place, because when the time comes, you and your sister will only have one chance."

It was on an unusually pleasant morning that Itsuki and Sae had met each other on the inclined path that led up to the Kureha shrine. Somehow, the area around the building that housed the shrine had managed to retain its divine beauty. It was on the very outskirts of the village and, despite it being well-maintained, was often unguarded. The same forest that rimmed the rest of the village also surrounded the small shrine, and the tall trees were its only sentinels.

The Kureha shrine was so obscure that Sae didn't remember ever visiting it, and Itsuki had made it a priority of his to bring her there. It was the building that housed the entrance to the village's escape tunnel, and once he had cleared Sae's path to freedom, Itsuki wanted to make sure that she knew where it began.

"Umm, Itsuki..." Sae spoke softly. She always spoke softly when he was around to hear her.

"What is it, Sae?" Itsuki asked compassionately.

"Well..." Sae's voice trailed off as she bit her lip. She looked ready to admit a deep secret, but she quickly lost her courage and settled on something else to say.

"If this is our path out of the village, then why haven't we used it yet?" Sae asked, trying to sound genuinely interested in the answer. Actually, Sae was in no hurry to go anywhere, and she hated to discuss their escape plan. But she loved to hear Itsuki's soft, caring voice, regardless of what it told her.

"I was beginning to wonder that myself." A new voice sounded from behind. Yae had come to join her friend and sister up on the top of the hill. As she hurried to greet them, struggling to scale the old stone steps, Itsuki's face brightened as he saw an old friend accompanying her.

"Ryozo! You made it here in one piece! How have things been!" Itsuki cheered, a hint of jubilation in his voice. He didn't notice Sae hanging her head, sorrowful to have her moment with Itsuki interrupted.

"I've been well." Ryozo nodded. "It's been about ten years since we met as children, right?"

"That sounds right to me. Thanks again for coming here to help Yae and Sae escape." Itsuki replied. Sae and Yae's mouths both went slightly agape as they saw Itsuki cracking an actual smile. It had been at least a few months since the last time they saw him grin, but it did give him happiness to think of the past. It gave everyone happiness to think of the past.

Ryozo, meanwhile, nodded gently. He ignored the girl's surprise and continued on.

"I've been working as an apprentice folklorist recently. My teacher, Seijiro, is actually here with me. There was no way that I was going to convince him to miss out on this place!" Ryozo said with a chuckle.

Itsuki's smile faded, and his serious demeanor returned.

"Yae, you mentioned that you wanted to know how we're going to escape." Itsuki turned to her. "The Kureha shrine passage is sealed by a mechanical lock that was installed a couple hundred years back. I've spent the past year researching it, and it was just a month ago that I finally figured out how to open it."

"And...?" Yae urged him to continue, eager to hear how she and her sister would be able to avoid the same cruel fate that had befallen Itsuki a year before. Sae faked a smile when she noticed Yae glancing her way.

"The unlocking mechanism is located in a hidden room underneath the old hollow tree just downhill. It's activated by four pinwheel tablets that have been hidden in the village ever since the passage was sealed. I've managed to find three of them already..."

Itsuki tried to hide a look of embarrassment.

"...but I'm still missing the one that used to belong to the Tsuchihara family. I can't even get a chance to search their destroyed manor; lately, the veiled priests aren't letting me out of their sight."

"It's been that way with us, too." Yae said, motioning to herself, Ryozo, and Sae. "It's barely December, but the veiled priests are already worried about the possibility that something could go wrong. It wasn't easy to find a chance for Ryozo and myself to slip away from them."

A moment of silence persisted. They realized that they needed an opportunity to search for the fourth quest, but when would the veiled priests let their guard down for enough time?

"I've got it!" Ryozo snapped his fingers. "Osaka-san mentioned to me that the village would be planning a celebration in a couple of weeks-to honor Seijiro and myself. I'm sure the veiled priests will be pre-occupied on that day. I probably won't be able to help you, but you three could probably slip out in the commotion."

Itsuki rubbed his hand through his silvery hair nervously.

"Well, I don't like the idea of having to cut the escape so close, but I guess that it's the best that we can do. Once I have the fourth pinwheel, I'll be able to unlock the Kureha passage, and then the four of us will be able to escape and..."

_...and then Ryozo's teacher will be left behind to die._

Itsuki's conscience flared up painfully and reminded him of a cruel detail that he had overlooked. On the day that Itsuki found the pinwheel and unlocked the mechanism, he, Ryozo, Yae, and Sae would be able to make their escape. But what about Seijiro? There was no way that both he and Ryozo would escape the watchful eyes of the priests, especially not on the day of the celebration. If the two newcomers were being treated nicely enough to warrant a celebration, that could only mean that at least one of them was being kept alive to perform the hidden ritual.

The ritual to sacrifice outsiders.

"Ryozo, what about your teacher?" Itsuki asked bluntly, choking back guilt. "We can't leave him behind, but there's no way that he'll be able to just walk out of here. That will be tough enough just for the four of us."

A ray of light shone in Sae's mind. This was her chance!

"Yae and I already thought of that!" Sae cheered, more than eager to impress the boy that she cared for so much. "There's a side door in the Kurosawa manor that leads through the underground cellar and out of the house. If Seijiro uses it, he could slip out during the night after the celebration."

Itsuki didn't respond, but he did breathe a sigh of relief. Sae continued to smile at him, hoping that she had managed to lift his spirits.

"Okay, I guess that Seijiro will be right behind us then." Itsuki said calmly. Ryozo shifted nervously, but no one noticed him.

"Once we're all out of the village, Ryozo has promised to look after the three of us until we can support ourselves. I've known him long enough to be sure that he's the perfect..."

"Yae-sama, Sae-sama, are you out here!"

Ryozo and Itsuki jumped at the call. Yae and Sae, more out of instinct than anything else, came together and embraced each other. Someone was coming.

Itsuki moved swiftly away from the Kureha shrine toward the stone steps that lead up to it. Sure enough, their rare moment of peace was over.

"There's a villager coming for you two!" Itsuki ran back, pointing at them hurriedly. Yae and Sae's hearts began to race.

"Oh god, what will he think if he sees all of us tog..."

"He won't." Itsuki interrupted Yae before she could finish. "Ryozo, come with me. We'll hide in the Kureha shrine together."

"What about us?" Sae asked, taking an innocent step towards him. Itsuki took a few steps toward the shrine, away from her.

"You and Yae need to stay out here." Itsuki commanded, sending a pang of hurt through Sae's body. "The villager is looking for you two, but if he doesn't find you, then he'll come looking in the shrine instead. Good luck!"

He hurried off before Sae could say anything else, disappearing into the depths of the shrine. Sae hid her anguished expression from Yae, and turned to join her sister in staring at the approaching villager.

"Makeibo-san." Yae greeted him.

"I'm glad I found you. I'm sorry to disturb you both, but something amazing has happened." Makeibo said in between his deep breaths. He looked exhausted.

Yae and Sae already suspected what the news was.

"It's your father, Ryokan-sama. The Ceremony Master has finally returned."

Sae felt her day brighten a little. Yae was visibly less enthusiastic, but both were instantly eager to witness his return. It had been almost a year since they had heard from him or seen him. Yae, in particular, was hoping that Ryokan might have changed for the better, but a small part of her knew that those hopes would be dashed.

As the three started to set off down the stone steps, Sae glanced to her side, at the villager that was escorting them. His shirt wasn't buttoned, and Sae caught a close look at his chest. When she realized that she wasn't hallucinating, Sae stopped in her tracks, and didn't move or look away from him until he turned to face her.

"Something wrong, Sae-sama?" He asked politely. Sae continued to stare at his chest in shock.

"You're...you're _starving_!" Sae choked out, finally summoning the courage to look him in the eyes. When Sae had looked at him, she likened his stomach to that of a corpse. He was even thinner than they were, and his ribs were jutting out so clearly that she felt as if they would tear through his thin skin at any moment.

"Oh, It's nothing." The villager insisted. Just being reminded about his hunger made him double over in pain, but it touched his heart to know that Sae actually cared for him. "At any rate, I won't be hungry for long. At the end of this year, I'll be fine. We all will, thanks to you and your sister."

His reply scalded her. She just stared at him with a masked expression, not finding the courage to respond. He smiled at her and patted her shoulder reassuringly. When he and Yae turned away from her again, Sae stole the chance to allow a single tear to run down her face, eventually dropping onto the aged stone below her feet.

"Coming, sister?" Yae asked soothingly, taking Sae's hand. They both found courage in each other's warmth, and before long they had set off for their old house, eager to see their old father.

xxXXxx

Reviews will be appreciated.


	13. Chapter 13: Homecoming Part 1

Chapter 13: Homecoming

A small crowd of people, most of them priests, had gathered at the small garden in front of the Kurosawa house to witness the Ceremony Master's triumphant return. He hadn't actually made it back to his manor yet, but the veiled priests that had been on guard duty at the village's entrance had ran ahead of him to spread the news. They were also spreading warnings that the Ceremony Master had changed in some way. Whatever had happened, they didn't like it.

Yae, however, ate the news up when she and Sae arrived at the garden. Perhaps a year abroad really had given Ryokan a dose of respect for his own life, and that of his family. Maybe they wouldn't have to escape after all. Maybe.

"There he is!" One of the priests at the front of the group shouted. Across the vast bridge, a lone, pale figure shrouded in tattered robes was making its way slowly toward the estate. With no delay, general cries of welcome rang out, from Sae and Yae as well as everyone else.

When he finally came into full view, though, the small crowd's cheers were promptly snuffed out by the crushing reality of Ryokan's appearance. The exhaustion and suffering of a year's travels were written all over his face, and he looked as tattered as his kimono. His eyes were glazed over, almost trance-like, and he was hobbling with every step he took.

As he passed by, save for a quick glance, at first he didn't pay any attention to his daughters at all. Looking at him closely, Sae saw scars hidden beneath his worn robes, and Yae noticed a bloody bandage wrapped around one of his feet. When he was finally within earshot of Kanehira and the other priests, Ryokan finally spoke.

"I found what I was looking for." Ryokan whispered with just the slightest hint of pride. He produced a small scroll with ancient print, and held it aloft. "I'm heading down into the Abyss' chamber to perform the rites."

When Kanehira tried to convince him to rest first, Ryokan ignored him. He had nearly reached the double doors when a sweet voice caught his attention.

"Ryokan-chan? Are you going to say nothing to your children?" Kiyomi had joined the group, and she looked hurt, much like Sae and Yae. He didn't care about that; he was _actually_ hurt, but something else in Kiyomi's voice had jogged his memory. He strode quickly back to his family, stopping only to deposit an object in Sae's hand, and then turned and disappeared into the depths of his house without another sound. The veiled priests followed him in, leaving the three women feeling just as lonely as they had felt that morning when, as far as they had known, Ryokan had disappeared.

Yae and Kiyomi stared over Sae's shoulder and exchanged anxious glances as she examined the object. It was an old stake, carved from dull, gray stone and doused in dried blood. There was a scrap of paper wrapped around it, which Sae opened and read silently.

_"don't forget me"_

The handwriting wasn't Ryokan's.

xxXXxx

Kanehira and the Osaka house priest shifted nervously as they stood sentinel in the candlelit chamber that preceded the Hellish Abyss. No one had been allowed in with Ryokan, not even the mourners. The two priests could hear the chanting of Ryokan's voice, along with a few voices that they did not recognize.

"So, how long has Ryokan-sama been at it?" The Osaka priest asked anxiously, hoping to draw his own attention away from the Abyss.

"A few hours now." Kanehira replied, just as anxious. The Ceremony Master's plan to prepare the Hellish Abyss for a new sacrifice hadn't inspired much confidence. Only he understood it fully, but Kanehira had been told, simply put, that Ryokan would be using his own soul as bait to draw the Abyss' malice out into the open. It sounded dangerous.

"So, did Ryokan-sama tell you anything about his travels?" The Osaka priest asked, allowing his curiosity to overtake him.

"Most of it is vague." Kanehira started. "He was gone for a year due to the time spent recovering from the injuries that the Kuzes dealt. I guess I was right when I warned him."

"I heard someone at the hospital tried to kill him too." The Osaka priest replied, shaking his head in disgust. Kanehira nodded back.

"Ryokan-sama did tell me some of what he saw, but most of it is quite strange. He even mentioned the sight of an endless shoreline hidden in an underground cavern."

"Hmm, sounds strangely pleasant. Why couldn't we be as fortunate?"

That was the last thing that the Osaka priest got to say. The cavern shook with enough force to knock both men to the ground. The candles in the room all toppled as well, clattering against each other, but there was nothing present to catch fire.

Kanehira wiped the dust off of his robes and tried to steady himself. By now, he was used to "disturbances", but that tremor had been like nothing he had felt before. He surveyed the room. Abruptly, Kanehira stopped and removed his court hat in mourning as his eyes settled on the other priest, a heavy slab of ceiling stone resting on him.

Then he turned his gaze to the pass that led into the Abyss' chamber. Ryokan had stopped chanting.

"Old friend, are you alright? Were you successful?" Kanehira called as he ran into the chamber. At first, Kanehira saw nothing, but then his eyes went wide as saucers as he noticed Ryokan lying on the ground. He wasn't moving, and worse still was the sight of a huge column of black vapor coming off of him. His face and chest were smoldering, his robes torn apart.

"Ryokan!" Kanehira's voice failed him, and he quickly moved toward the edge of the Abyss to collect his friend and carry him away from danger. He didn't notice the thin wisps of black brume that clung to Ryokan's face, and he didn't notice when they slipped into his friend's body.

xxXXxx

Despite what many people thought a disaster, Ryokan still insisted that his special ritual had been a success. The malice had certainly been drawn to him, but his efforts had seemingly cost him his face. He was so badly seared by the malice that the priests had covered all of his head save for his mouth in bandages.

Eventually the drama of that day wore off. A couple of weeks passed, and Ryokan took his much needed time off to recover from his travels and wounds. Sae, Yae, Kiyomi, and even Itsuki made repeat visits to him, and eventually Ryokan warmed up a little. Not enough to stop him from worrying about the future, but at least he knew that he had his family on his side. Even if they weren't with him completely, he knew that he could trust himself.

In the darkest reaches of hell, at the bottom of an Abyss, unseen entities began to laugh.

xxXXxx

"You know, Sae, we don't come out here often enough."

Yae and Sae had picked a beautiful afternoon to visit the old river where they had often played as children. It was in the forest, and the sunlight filtered through the trees perfectly, creating golden streaks that danced across the water's surface. The plants had a bright aura to them that Sae and Yae never saw in the village anymore.

"Sorry, Yae." Sae apologized prematurely. "I've just been a bit distracted lately. You know, I was glad to see father's face when he had his bandages removed."

Yae shuddered. She had seen her father's face as well, and neither of them, or anyone for that matter, could tell why it had healed so fast. It had only been two weeks, but the celebration was slated to occur the next day, and Ryokan had wanted to afford Ryozo and Seijiro the courtesy of a visible smile.

Not only was his face healing perfectly, but his _other_ wounds were ebbing away at unusually fast paces as well. His fatigue had also vanished.

"Yeah, great." Yae muttered, allowing bitterness to seep out of her soul. "I'm sure that he'll just be more watchful of us tomorrow. It'll make our escape more difficult."

Sae cast her eyes down at the river. Yae noticed her sister twiddling her fingers in what was obviously an anxious gesture. She assumed that Sae had been put off by her mordant comment, and she immediately donned a rueful expression, but Sae had something else on her mind.

"Yae, about our escape plan." Sae spoke timidly, feeling horrible about herself for having to admit what she was truly contemplating. But she was determined to look her dear sister in the eye and tell the truth. This was the last day separating them from their escape. It was now or never.

"I don't think I can go through with it." Sae shut her eyes tightly and recoiled, almost fearing that her sister would strike her. She felt a hand on her cheek, but it was a soft stroke. Sae opened her eyes and saw Yae gazing into them.

"Sae, I don't understand. Are you just nervous?" Yae said with a mix of surprise and compassion. Sae bit her lip and closed her eyes again.

"No, dear sister, it's not that at all!" She couldn't shake a sense of urgency from her voice. Sae shook her head from side to side, trying to dislodge the guilt from it.

"Well, then why do you seem so reluctant? Years ago, you and I made a promise that we would never leave each other, that we would never tire of each other, that we would be together forever. Don't you still want that?" Yae sounded hurt, and Sae became more anxious as she searched for a proper way to explain herself.

"Yae, I want it more than you will ever know..."

Sae forced herself to come clean.

"...I just don't see how we can have that if we escape."

Yae just stared at her sister, confused. Sae felt her heartbeat quicken.

"Yae, I remember our promise just as well as you do. But as much as I wish we could just stay together for the rest of our lives, the truth is we will have to live our lives separately. Yae, as long as you and I aren't the same person, this life will be nothing but a hollow countdown, until the day that you leave me behind. But that can be changed..."

"...if we perform the ritual." Yae finished for her. She always seemed to have a sense of what her sister was thinking, but that sense had almost failed her this time.

Yae began to shake, breathing deeply as the full realization of what her sister was suggesting winded her. She stumbled, suddenly off balance, and fell to her knees. Sae gasped and knelt down with her sister, her hands placed on her sister's shoulders to steady her. However, neither of them had the strength to say anything, and for several moments the only sound of consolation was the running water of the river. Even the wind had stopped blowing.

"Yae...please...say something." Sae couldn't give up now, and she took her sister and wrapped her in a comforting embrace. It seemed to calm Yae down, at first. Until Yae's hands came close to Sae's neck, accidentally, and she recoiled in horror, tearing herself out of Sae's arms.

Several more moments passed before Yae regained her composure.

"Sae, be honest with me. This..._thing_ you're asking me to do, is it because of something that father said?"

Sae tried to look her sister in the eyes, even as Yae's were sad and distant, full of thought and worry.

"No, dear sister, it's a conclusion that I reached myself." She confirmed Yae's deepest fear. However, Yae hid the heartache, not wanting to distress her sister any further. Sae deserved better than that.

Gradually, Yae's distant look ceased, and she came to focus on her sister once more. Ashamed of having pushed her sister away just moments earlier, she quickly scuffled toward Sae, so that their knees almost touched.

"Sae..." Yae searched for the right words, "...you know that I love you, right?"

"Of course, Yae! I love you too." Sae exclaimed, her voice a mix of surprise and slight indignation.

Yae looked away from Sae briefly as her mind hearkened back to the past. She dipped her hand into a nearby stream that ran off of the river, and allowed the water to slide off. The water was clear and warm.

"I know you do, Sae. That's why we made our promise all those years ago. We did it because we loved each other, but I guess I was too blind to see that, all along, our promise meant something different to you. I'm sorry, Sae."

Sae nodded gently in understanding, but already she was struggling to hold back tears. She was still waiting on an answer to her suggestion, but a small part of her already knew that she was going to be disappointed.

"I won't judge your choice, Sae, and you know that I'll always love you, no matter what. But I can't kill you. Killing isn't love, and for me, killing you would be breaking our promise, not keeping it. Give me a chance to keep our promise in the only way I know how, and I will promise you that I will never leave you."

Yae struggled to resist the temptation to look away from her sister, whose eyes were starting to fill with tears. She knew that her answer wasn't the one that Sae had hoped for, but she couldn't do anything to change it.

"Promise me, Sae. Promise me that, tomorrow, you'll be by my side when we escape together."

Sae wiped away her tears and struggled to see the optimism that Yae held so clearly. Finally not content to simply look at her sister, Sae threw herself into Yae's waiting arms and buried her head under her sister's chin. Yae began to weep too as she felt her sister's warm tears staining her kimono. By the time that Sae found the strength to speak, clouds were beginning to roll in, obscuring the sunlight and stealing the pleasing shimmer of the stream water. In what seemed like moments, the forest had become dark.

"Alright, Yae, I'll escape with you."

xxXXxx

Ryokan had been pacing through his estate for hours, ignoring the pain in his foot. He had no destination, but he had found in recent days that he needed occasional time to take a stroll. It was the only thing that could clear his thoughts and rid him of his own crippling worries.

He had been home for a couple of weeks now, but Ryokan didn't feel like he had returned to the same home that he left behind. Everywhere he went, he would feel the same haunting pathos deep inside. He wasn't quite sure how, but something in his village was rotten, and it wasn't the dying plants.

Grim suspicion was often his traveling companion. As Ryokan walked into his cellar, he couldn't help realizing that the key to the door connecting his cellar to the front garden had gone missing. Whenever he would see Yae or Sae on one of his walks, they would run from him and make themselves scarce as quickly as possible. That was normal behavior for Yae, but definitely not for Sae.

It didn't matter if he saw something specific. Wherever he wandered during his long saunters, a pall of escalating mistrust was there, stalking him steadily. He tried to shake off his concerns, but they always came back to haunt him, and they were becoming more persistent over the past couple of weeks.

Now, in the afternoon, Ryokan had found himself on yet another stroll, taking advantage of the frequent absence of others in his house. Even Yae and Sae were spending more time away; another worry for him to add to his mental list.

As he wandered up the stairs and through the second story of his house, new feelings began to haunt Ryokan. They weren't merely impressions of mistrust; _this time_ an air of agony and darkness was quickly invading his mind. Along with it, for one reason or another, came a strange aching sensation that Ryokan felt in his head and face, causing him to become flustered.

Ryokan breathed deeply and slowed his pace as he walked through the connecting corridors of the second floor. He tried to ignore the feelings that attempted to consume him, but Ryokan's fear and paranoia coalesced when he entered the guest room. He was the only one in the room, yet he felt a presence as he stared into it from the open doorway. A floorboard creaked, even though no one stepped on it. A glass fell to the floor and shattered, even though no one pushed it.

Worst of all, though, was what Ryokan heard. A whispering voice was emitting from the room from an unseen source, but the dialect was guttural and unnatural. While Ryokan struggled to comprehend the sound, a shadow began to move along the wall, looking far too lively to be cast by any object. Quickly, the shadow caught Ryokan's attention as it took form and lunged at him, but he was quick enough to slam the door and back away from the room. He didn't stop to wait for the door to creak open, and he ran through the hallway and isolated himself in his nearby study, burdened with a deep sense of apprehension. The fear only intensified as he turned away from the study door, to face a room that he did not recognize.

The chamber was overwhelmingly dark, suffocated by an onerous sense of dread that threatened to crush Ryokan and drag his withering sense of courage from him. Despite all the candles and torches in the room being lit, his study looked as if it hadn't seen a visitor in centuries. The colors of the tapestries and kimonos that hung on the walls had faded, and the tapestries themselves were tattered, hung on wooden surfaces that were now warped and buckled with age. All around the room Ryokan's artifacts, also worn by time, seemed to stare out at him with silent eyes.

As Ryokan took slow steps into the room, a foul scent of decay stung his nostrils. Each step kicked up a cloud of fine dust that irritated him, smelling of mold and rot. Worse still, the pain in Ryokan's face was flaring up again. The irritation had become a severe scalding that made him feel as if his face had rotted away along with the rest of the room. As he wandered across the study, Ryokan quickly realized that he couldn't leave the place quickly enough, and he turned back to the door that he had come through.

Ryokan reached to open the door, just in time to see a shadow pass under it. Or, rather, it had been two small shadows, one after the other. Something had run by his door, but when he opened it slowly and peered out into the hallway, more emptiness was all that greeted him. The hallway looked bright and renovated, indicating that Ryokan's strange experience was over, for the moment.

"What is happening to me?" He uttered to himself, fear in his voice.

xxXXxx

The sun was beginning to set on the Minakami landscape when Itsuki received a knock at his door. He heard Chitose scrambling for cover up above and chuckled softly, but at his core he felt slightly scared too. He opened the door ajar and glanced through it in much the way that a soldier might steal a final glance at his enemy. He was at least partially expecting to see a veiled priest approach him with hostility. Much to his relief, Sae greeted him softly instead, but he couldn't help but notice that some part of her seemed to be missing.

"Yae's back at the Kurosawa estate." Sae said preemptively, noticing Itsuki's confused look. She shuddered at the unpleasant realization that Yae was so far away, but Sae had been the one to send her dear sister home early. She knew that she had to talk to Itsuki alone, if just once.

"Umm...come in." Itsuki said awkwardly, standing aside to make room for his friend. Itsuki closed the door quickly, taking one more nervous look outside and squinting as his eyes grazed the setting sun.

Sae and Itsuki took seats across from each other in the large entrance room. It put Itsuki at ease to know that the house was nearly empty. His father was on guard duty again.

"So what is it that's bothering you?" Itsuki asked compassionately. Sae blushed and smiled at his kindness; such emotions were in short supply in the village these days.

"Well, I've been talking to Yae recently, and..." Sae twiddled her thumbs and drifted away from her own words, finding herself with the insurmountable task of admitting to her dearest friend that her enthusiasm toward his well-intentioned escape plan had been fabricated.

"...and you're having second thoughts about leaving this place." Itsuki finished for her, looking into her eyes. Though initially frightened of his reaction, Sae soon became calmed as she saw the trust and understanding in Itsuki's eyes that had attracted her to him in the first place. There was no fathoming her thankfulness for his kind heart.

"I'm sorry, Itsuki, but...yes. When I told my sister I thought that she would leave me in the end, Yae tried to convince me that I could trust her. And it's not that I don't want to..." Sae choked back a sob, riddled with the guilt that could only be experienced by someone like her. Itsuki rose from his seat and moved silently to one that was right next to Sae, allowing his sense of devotion to be his guide.

"...it's just...I don't know." Sae finally allowed a tear to roll down her cheek, not knowing how to reconcile her trust and doubt of Yae. "I worry that she can't control what will happen to us. Does that make me a horrible sister?"

"Stop that." Itsuki commanded, his tone now forceful. His gaze was piercing, but still kind. "Sae, you're _not_ a bad sister, not at all. For that matter, you're a great friend and a wonderful daughter. We're all lucky to have you, even if _some_ of us don't admit it."

Itsuki had obviously been referring to Sae's father when he said "some". Her eyes went blank for a moment as she thought of him.

"What about the rest of the village? How am I such a good person if the three of us allow so many others to die just so that _I_ can live!"

Itsuki sighed deeply, feeling him muscles tense. He had hoped that he would not be tasked with admitting the grim truth to Sae, but he wouldn't lie to her. Not anymore.

"Sae, I know how cruel this might sound, but letting someone die isn't the same as killing them. As much as I've always hoped that the rest of the villagers would see this cursed place for what it really is, I can't hold on to that hope any longer, and neither can you. I know, because my own father tried it."

Sae's eyes wend wide, and she nearly rolled off of the couch in shock. Kanehira had been a very loyal priest for as long as she had known him. Itsuki's news wasn't something that she had anticipated.

"What happened?" She asked, beside herself.

"About two decades ago, my father tried to convince Ryokan to evacuate the village. Your father wouldn't listen to him, though. He told him to keep his doubts silent, to never speak of them again, and that's just what my father did." Itsuki's eyes became hooded as he looked down at the ground, his voice bitter. Sae cringed in her seat. She didn't like to see Itsuki this way, but he returned to his old self after a few unsettling moments.

"I know that you want to help everyone, Sae. That's what the crimson sacrifice is supposed to do, strangely enough. In fact, I guess you could say that, well, I...love you...love that about you." Itsuki added the last part hastily, blushing horribly and turning his face away, an image that Sae mirrored. "But sometimes people just need to make their own choices. I wish it could be different, but it can't."

Getting up the courage to look at her again, Itsuki could see the infectious self-doubt still in her eyes. As he stared at her, Itsuki realized that he had forgotten to say something important. He moved closer to her, so that she was acutely aware of his form brushing against hers. She looked up, eyes shimmering, and mustered a small smile.

"Sae..." His voice was a silken whisper, and he was so close to her that she could feel his breath. "...you and I are more than just friends. I think we both know that."

Itsuki's lips brushed against hers briefly. Sae felt the world light up as ten years of friendship and some untold years of hidden passion were finally reconciled. Suddenly fearless, Sae wrapped her arms around his torso to try to press them together even further, but Itsuki pulled away from her, leaving her feeling vacant.

"However, this isn't about me. I'm not asking you to think of yourself, or any of the villagers. All I wish...is that you will think about, and care for, the one person that you love more than any other, and you know who that is."

The two stood up. Sae took a couple of steps forward, hoping for another gesture from Itsuki. When none came, Sae nodded solemnly, even as she continued to wish that things could be different. Not having the strength to stay away from her sister any longer, Sae decided to take her leave, but not before turning back to Itsuki one last time.

"By the way, Itsuki, I think you're wrong about my father. It isn't that he doesn't care about people, it's just that he...cares differently. You know, earlier today, father handed me a piece of paper that he collected during his travels."

Itsuki raised an eyebrow at Sae's comments, but said nothing.

"I can't be sure what the piece of paper meant, but I think there's a reason that Ryokan chose _me_ to hand it to. It had something to do with what he did in the Kuze shrine, and whatever it is, he's ashamed of it."

Sae's words left Itsuki lost in his own thoughts, and he turned away from her without giving a proper good-bye. Sae felt the cold biting into her, realizing that she had lingered outside for too long, and she set of toward Kurosawa estate, direly hoping that Yae would be there to greet her.

xxXXxx

Reviews will be appreciated.


	14. Chapter 14: Homecoming Part 2

Thanks to Ross House and TheKarasunaki for faving my story! Much appreciated :)

Thanks also to Fan of Games for continuing to review. You asked if this chapter is the end of the story. In fact, there is actually a lot left after this. However, I do know how much story is left before the ending. Would you like me to tell you how many chapters are left, or should I leave it a surprise?

You're in for a surprise concerning Ryokan! ;)

xxXXxx

Chapter 14: Homecoming Part 2

Night had fallen over the village, and its streets were silent, devoid of activity. Not that anyone inside the Kurosawa house would be able to tell. There were almost no windows to remind the estate's occupants of the outer world, and the only indication that it even existed was the wind that family members could barely hear through the house's thin walls. The lack of windows wasn't a design flaw, instead born from the superstitions and beliefs held by the village. For various reasons, no one was eager to peer outside after the skies had gone dark.

Ryokan had been locked in his study ever since his encounter earlier that day. He was still shaken up by his visions, but his real problem was figuring out why they had occurred in the first place. As the Ceremony Master, he had of course seen things before that disturbed him, but not like this.

Evidently no one else had, either, since his hours of study had turned up no information that he could use in the slightest. He had read the records of every Ceremony Master and priest for the past 200 years, burned through countless scrolls, and even meditated in the hopes that he could impel another vision, but still he was as lost in his ignorance as the village was in the dark of night.

He was nearly ready to give in to the night's whispers and fall asleep when a creaking in the floorboards roused him. A knocking came from the study door. Grateful for a reason to get up and stretch his legs, Ryokan answered with haste, to find Ryozo standing before him.

"I just wanted to wish you goodnight, Kurosawa-san, and thank you for all your hospitality. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's celebration."

Ryozo smiled, and Ryokan delivered a fake but convincing smile in return.

_That's it, Ryozo. Enjoy the hospitality. Enjoy it while you can._

"I'm excited as well, Ryozo. It will be a celebration to die for. Sleep well."

Ryozo nodded nervously, and Ryokan bit his lip at not knowing to corral his ominous manner of speaking when he had to. But Ryozo didn't call him on it, and within moments he was heading off down the hallway to the guest chamber. Ryokan shrugged and closed the door, planning to return to his studies for a bit longer before turning in.

_Don't bother pouring through your texts, Ceremony Master. They won't tell you what has afflicted you. After all, this is the first time it has ever happened._

Ryokan's blood froze. His heart leaped when he heard the voice resonate, seeming to come from within his own thoughts. But he didn't allow himself to show any fear, and he quickly turned and eyed the room, looking for the one behind the haunting voice. The howl of the wind was all that greeted him, nothing in sight.

_Might I borrow a moment of your time, Ryokan? I promise I'll be quick._

It wasn't coming from the room, it was resounding through his own body, the way that one hears their own thoughts. But Ryokan understood now; these thoughts weren't his. They were being forced upon him by the same one that had haunted him with the visions. At last, Ryokan knew what was wrong with him.

"I'm possessed." Ryokan stated plainly, slightly invigorated by his understanding of what had happened. "Even though I can't see you, I can sense your anger and pain singing my soul. But you're wrong, spirit; possession isn't new in my village. Hell, I've freed others from the hold of your kind, so what chance do you think you have? I'd advise you depart from my body, now. You're not welcome here."

When he fell silent, Ryokan heard a drawling, low rumble within his body; the sound of the demon mumbling, contemplating his words.

_You're only half right, Ryokan. I am, by most people's standards, quite an evil spirit. But I'm much more than that. I am an entity that you are quite familiar with, yet beyond your comprehension. I am cruel and vindictive, yet merciful beyond my thousands of years. I, or rather WE, are the ones that you live to keep appeased._

Many moments of silence persisted as Ryokan stood wreathed by darkness, trying to make sense of the spirit's words. When he finally did, terror and surprise immediately inflicted him, draining his senses and his confidence.

"No, it...it's not possible!"

A loud, cruel spasm of laughter erupted in Ryokan's mind. He could hear more than one voice speaking.

_Oh, but it is, 'Ceremony Master'. We are more than simple evil; we are YOUR masters! We are the Malice!_

Ryokan spoke with anxiety clearly in his voice.

"How is this possible! The Malice has never possessed anyone in this village before!"

The Malice chuckled condescendingly before speaking. Its voice was a dirge of low wails and haunting echoes. It was disgusting.

_Well, Ryokan, even if you were right, how much longer do you really think that courtesy will last? Who knows; maybe you're just the first!_

Another overbearing laugh echoed. The thing was toying with him. Ryokan remained standing and kept a straight face, trying his very best to recover his composure. He knew that displaying inner courage could help stave off eager spirits, but he could feel his own resolve depleting rapidly as beads of icy sweat rolled down his forehead. He was in danger, and he knew it. A generic spirit was one thing, but if the Malice itself had infected his soul, there was every possibility that it could kill him at any time. But then, why wasn't it?

Ryokan rose to speak, hoping to keep himself together long enough to finish the dreadful conversation.

"As if it really matters. If you truly are an emissary of the Malice, then you already know that I'm not going to be fooled by your trickery."

_Who is playing tricks, Ryokan? Why would we do that, when we want exactly what you want?_

The Malice's words came matter-of-factly, but Ryokan tried to ignore them, as curious as they were.

"Truth told, I really don't know what you want. But why should I care? I exist to keep you in the afterlife where you belong, not to understand you."

A few moments of silence as Ryokan awaited the creeping echo of a reply.

_Well, to tell a little truth of our own, we're not really hard to understand. All that we desire is that which you have promised us._

Ryokan understood its meaning. There were two things that the Malice desired, one or the other. The first: it wanted its overdue sacrifices. The other...

"If that's true, then why has this town been gripped by plague? If you really want your sacrifices so badly, then why can't you wait for them!"

It was a desperate gambit on Ryokan's part to try to reassure the Malice, and his attempt only entertained it. Yet another laugh, this one being of a surprised and unbelieving nature, resounded through the room.

_How long are we to wait, Ceremony Master? It's been decades since the last correctly performed ritual; that is a debt on your head, not ours. You owe us your daughters, Ceremony Master. That was the agreement, and time is short._

The "time is short" comment worried Ryokan, as it indicated the Malice's true intentions. His eyes narrowed in frustration.

"You're bluffing!"

_Are we? Take a look in the mirror, Ryokan!_

At the Malice's words, Ryokan felt a sudden compulsion to look into the ornate mirror hanging on the study's wall. When he did, though, the vision that greeted him wrung his spirit of any strength.

The room visible behind him through the mirror's image was destroyed and run-down, much like it had been in his vision earlier that day. But that wasn't the part that worried him; it was his _own_ image that caused the most terror. In the reflection, his once grand robes were dulled and tattered, barely hanging onto his skeletal frame. On the center of his chest, an enormous laceration, at least a foot long, trailed diagonally across his body, dripping blackened, rotten blood onto the ground.

But worst of all was his face, or rather the lack of one. His skin had withered away, revealing a gaunt, gray skull. His teeth were cracked and broken, and his eyes were gone, replaced by beads of glaring red light.

As he observed his form, Ryokan's face flared up with pain again, worse than before, enough to induce screaming in a lesser man. Looking at the mirror, it wasn't hard to see why.

The Malice spoke one last time before falling silent.

_This is what may be, Ryokan. If you won't oblige our endless arrangement, then we will barter in blood instead. Decide quickly, Ryokan, because if you don't, the choice will be made for you._

xxXXxx

Sae and Yae had been home for a few hours by that point. It was late at night; midnight at least. Normally, they would have turned in much sooner, but neither of them could force themselves to fall asleep. Their room seemed just a little darker that night.

Yae finished changing into her sleeping gown and looked over at Sae. She was taking a long time to get dressed, and Yae could see her shaking faintly. A sorrowful note echoed in Yae's heart, and very soon Sae felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder as she anxiously buttoned her gown.

"I know how scared you are Sae..." Yae started.

"Scared of what?" The unexpected voice caused Yae and Sae to jump. Their other fears temporarily forgotten, both turned with wide eyes to the door, where Kiyomi stood, staring down at them softly. Rather, she looked down at the floor, not being able to look at them directly. She wished that she hadn't had the nerve to ask her daughters what they were scared of; there were so many potential answers to that question.

"I...well...just wanted to wish you two goodnight." Kiyomi blushed, smiling as warmly as possible, trying to mask her inner grief. She found it hard to look at Sae...but she knew she had to.

"Goodnight, Kiyomi. I love you." Yae and Sae spoke nearly in unison even though both were speaking unevenly, trying to hide the grief in their voices. Neither of them hesitated to rise from their beds to give Kiyomi a hug, and she eagerly returned the gesture.

"I love you both. So much..." Kiyomi trailed off, and grew worried when she realized what attachment to the twins she was showing. She checked behind herself, out of reflex, to make sure no one else had heard her, and then just as quickly as she had come, Kiyomi departed. They weren't sure, but Yae and Sae thought they had noticed a tear slide down her cheek.

The silence didn't persist long, though. After a few moments, another more surprising figure interrupted the quiet of the twins' room.

"I just wanted to say goodnight to both of you." Ryozo said, looking quite tired himself. Yae briefly rolled her eyes as a sense of deja-vu gripped her, but then her smile faded as she saw Ryozo's face. He was glaring at them and frowning intensely; the look that Itsuki had mentioned he would often get when he was dead serious about something.

He wasn't there just to wish them goodnight. Somehow, Yae's expression made him aware of her understanding, and Ryozo entered their room and sat down next to them, taking care to close the door tightly behind him. He came close to avoid the need to raise his voice.

"Kurosawa-san found the hammer key hidden in the guest bedroom." Yae and Sae felt their hearts drop at his word, knowing fully that Ryozo's own escape plan had been lost. "I think that the only reason he hasn't confronted us yet is because he still needs us. But I might have another plan to get out of here."

Yae and Sae were listening intently. Ryozo could feel their breath on his face, but he didn't back up.

"Tomorrow is the celebration that your father is holding for me and Seijiro-sensei. Kurosawa-san and the priests will probably be busy that day, so I think I can slip out of the village without being seen."

"What about Seijiro?" Yae interrupted. Ryozo bit his lip.

"Seijiro will not come. He and I have agreed that we can not both escape without being noticed. Someone has to stay behind and be the center of attention for the villagers. Besides, Seijiro is very much in love with the work he does as a folklorist. His desire to see the hidden ritual is too great, even if it means being a part of it."

Yae felt her hopes abandon her, but she didn't complain. She didn't like the fallback plan, but it was better than nothing.

"I will wait just outside the village limits for you two and Itsuki to make your escape for as long as I can. If, for whatever reason, you have to delay your escape, then I will come back for you again...on the night of the Crimson Ceremony."

Yae and Sae tensed up at the ritual's mention. They didn't respond to Ryozo any further, but he knew they had both heard him. Not being one to linger, Ryozo disappeared into the dark halls of the Kurosawa house.

xxXXxx

Reviews will be appreciated.


	15. Chapter 15: Deception Revealed

Alright, I've got the next update here. Thanks to Fan of Games, AuthorNicola, and Marc Taylor for reviewing.

Marc, I had a reason for not including the part about the twins who were crushed in the cave in. That reason is revealed in this chapter.

Chapter 15: Deception Revealed

It was the day that Ryokan and the rest of the village had been awaiting. The day of the "Outsider's Festival", a mere few days away from the Kusabi and Crimson rituals. It was a beautiful day for any celebration. The sky was devoid of any clouds, the winter day was unusually warm, and the plants that weren't already dead were glowing a bright green.

Ryokan anticipated the Festival more than anyone, knowing that it would cement the prospective Kusabi's trust in him. Too bad Ryokan himself wasn't there.

Not yet, anyway. Ryokan was still trapped in his bed chamber, for the moment, seemingly alone, but stuck entertaining a rather unpleasant guest.

_Excited for the day's festival, Ryokan?_

He rubbed his temples in frustration. The Malice had resurfaced in his mind to speak with him again. Ryokan hastily changed into formal attire while enduring the Malice's teasing. He didn't have time to wait; he had slept in and knew that the festival would be underway.

"Are you still here? You know, you never mentioned why exactly you tried to seize my soul. It's been a day, yet I'm not insane. I'm no different, so far as I can tell. What's your angle?"

The Malice laughed at him again. Ryokan was really starting to detest its voice.

_Don't flatter yourself, Ryokan. We have no angle, we are merely here to assure that you're serving our interests. That is the duty of the Ceremony Master, even if he does have a family._

"I know that, but my family has never conflicted with that duty." Ryokan responded, insulted by the Malice's unspoken suggestion.

_Sure they haven't. Speaking of that very family, don't you think that maybe you've let them slip through your fingers a little?_

Ryokan raised an eyebrow at the Malice's accusation.

"What makes you say that? I've checked to assure that Yae and Kiyomi are on my side, and Sae has believed in the Crimson Sacrifice all her life."

A god-awful noise slithered out of Ryokan's mind. The mention of Sae had sparked something in the Malice; the spirits were fantasizing about something sick.

_Yes, I suppose she has. It's beautiful really, the way you manipulated her. It made her so weak, so vulnerable, so foolish. We just love it!_

It disturbed Ryokan that he, the father of Sae, was not more offended at the Malice's cruel words. Actually, Sae had never needed manipulating to get her to believe in her destiny. It was fortunate, but the Malice didn't need to know about it.

_Still, you trust them too much. In the end, they will betray you._

Ryokan still wasn't buying it, and he was quickly losing his temper.

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

_Maybe, but why not check anyway, just to be sure? If your family has nothing to hide, then what do they have to fear from a little... illumination!_

"Why should I! My family is trustworthy, even Yae." Ryokan tried to defend her, but he was quickly losing confidence, shrinking under the Malice's scrutinizing glare. It sensed his doubt, and it knew how to appeal to his reason. Its response was simple and calculated:

_You think Yae is trustworthy? According...to __**whom**__?_

Ryokan bit his lip. With those words, Ryokan remembered the day that he had spoken to Yae about the ritual. She may have agreed to kill her sister, but all that Ryokan had was her word. She had done nothing to prove her loyalty. Words were not enough.

"Alright, Malice, I'll take your advice just this once. Before too long, I will banish you from my soul."

The Malice growled in approval, knowing full well who was truly in charge.

_We'll see. Sooner or later, Ryokan, you will accept us as a part of yourself, by choice. Until then, enjoy the festival. We'll be watching._

xxXXxx

Ryokan entered the village's lower plaza to find Seijiro and Ryozo surrounded by villagers. They were all faking their adoration of him very well, and although a few individuals seemed uneasy, things seemed to be going as planned.

After people had talked for awhile, the villagers and priests settled down for a banquet using food and drink that had been stored for such an occasion. Seijiro and Ryozo were given seats of honor along with Yae, Sae, and of course, Ryokan.

"To the outsiders!" Ryokan shouted, standing and declaring a toast. Even the children present raised their glasses. "May their presence in our village carry us to new splendid heights!"

"Oh, I'll bet." Yae thought bitterly, ignoring the cheers that rang out from priest and farmer alike. She was itching to get away and search for the fourth crest, the only thing standing between them and escape. But her chance had not come yet.

The day dragged on, and both Ryokan and his children quickly became impatient. Seijiro started taking pictures with a remarkably modernistic camera, and before long Sae handed her father a picture that had been taken of her. He frowned when he looked at it. Sae's face was warped and distorted, looking more like a soaked watercolor painting than a picture. It was oddly haunting, but unimportant.

Finally, as the festival was beginning to wind down, Ryokan stopped biding his time and excused himself from the table. He headed off back to the Kurosawa house with his ulterior motives in mind, at the time not knowing that Yae and her three compatriots had some of their own. Taking advantage of her father's absence, as well as the level of alcohol that had found its way into the now-drowsy priests, Yae signaled the others. They rose, one at a time to avoid suspicion, and stole themselves away in plain daylight.

xxXXxx

Ryokan barged into Yae and Sae's room. It was messy, perhaps deliberately to discourage snooping. That didn't stop him. Now that he was expecting (although far from hoping) to find treason in one of Yae's notes, it didn't take him long to find something that confirmed his fears. He hadn't wanted to believe it, but the Malice had been right:

_The time of the ritual is coming soon. Itsuki and Mutsuki's ritual didn't work, and this year it's our turn._

_I'm leaving the village with you. Itsuki will help us escape, and we'll be together forever, like I promised._

_-Yae _

_The truth is, I don't want to run._

_But as long as I can be with you,_

_I'll follow you anywhere. Just don't leave me here alone._

_-Sae _

By the time the pages of the diary entry had floated to the ground, Ryokan had already disappeared from the room. He ran the distance back to the plaza, intent on bringing justice to his daughters.

xxXXxx

"Priests, come to attention, all of you!" Ryokan shouted. He had returned to the celebration to find that Sae, Yae, and Itsuki were all gone. He had expected that much, but Ryozo seemed to be missing too. Was he another part of their plot? Fortunately, Seijiro was still present.

Ryokan's patience wore away as the response from his priests didn't come. Most of them were drunk or asleep, and they didn't seem aware of the fact that their very angry superior was bearing down on them.

At that point, something in Ryokan snapped. His eyes went dark, and his hand twitched as he reached for his ceremonial sword. He had been carrying it around that day, sheathed at his side to make him appear more regal. He hadn't expected to use it, but the circumstances of the day had changed.

Ryokan barely thought about what he was doing, but it seemed right. He drew his sword, turned toward the nearest sleeping priest, and drove the sword into his foot.

Far from asleep now, the priest's howls of pain echoed loudly enough to wake every other priest nearby. Wine bottles shattered on the ground as the priest doubled over in pain and fell out of his chair, blood gushing out and staining the earth. Ryokan sheathed his sword, not bothering to wipe off the blood.

Of course, the priests at least now understood that something was horribly wrong. Even the drunk ones could feel the tension in the air. The villagers felt it too, but they didn't dare to let their curiosity get the best of them.

"Sir, what is going on!" Kanehira asked amid the commotion, trying his best to ignore the injured priest.

Ryokan came close to Kanehira so that he could whisper. Somehow, his voice still sounded like an angry shout.

"My daughters and your son have betrayed us. We are going to stop them before they succeed. Come, I'll explain things once we're away from Seijiro and the villagers."

Ryokan led most of the priests to the upper plaza, away from the celebration. A few stayed behind to monitor Seijiro, who still seemed content. Once they were away, Ryokan turned to address the others.

"Gentlemen, the situation that we all fear is becoming a reality. Yae and Sae are attempting to escape the village with Itsuki's help, before their sacrifice can be carried out." A few mumbles of concern passed through the crowd of priests, but most of them were too worried to say anything.

"Fortunately, they have yet to succeed. We can still stop them if we hurry."

"Umm, Kurosawa-sama?" One priest near the front of the group spoke. "I noticed Ryozo leaving the festival early. He looked nervous."

That confirmed Ryokan's suspicions that Ryozo was working with Itsuki.

"He was heading back to your estate, Master. He's probably there collecting his belongings as we speak. We should head him off at the village's entrance before..."

"Wait." Ryokan held up a hand to silence the priest. He had a different idea. "Once Yae and Sae have been found, _remove _the guard from the village's entrance and allow Ryozo to pass."

"What!" Many of the priests spoke in resounding surprise, but Ryokan simply stood there, stone-faced.

"You heard me." Ryokan clarified. "At this point, Ryozo is an unnecessary nuisance. We only need one person to fulfill the Kusabi ritual, and we have that one person already. So far as I am concerned, it will be better for everyone if Ryozo were merely as far away from this place as possible."

The priests nodded reluctantly, and a couple left the group to inform the village's entrance guard of the plan. Ryokan turned, and his hooded eyes gazed back at the lower plaza, where the festival was still barely audible in the distance.

"However," Ryokan noted, "Seijiro is necessary; he is our Kusabi. He will have to be imprisoned immediately following the festival's conclusion."

"I understand, Master." Another priest replied. "Shall we place him in the old storehouse?"

"No. Put him in the Kurosawa house cell instead. I have _someone else _in mind for the storehouse." Ryokan answered with a wicked smile on his face. Kanehira felt a shiver go down his spine. A few priests nodded in understanding and separated from the group to apprehend Seijiro. That left over half of the priests still present, around two dozen of them.

"Sir?" One near the back of the group asked. "What is our responsibility?"

Ryokan frowned.

"We are going after Sae and Yae. They could be anywhere, but I know just where to look."

xxXXxx

Itsuki had been searching along with Yae and Sae for what seemed like hours (even though it had been less than one). They had combed through the wreckage of what had once been the Tsuchihara household, but had yet to find anything.

Just as Itsuki set upon digging through a pile of charred debris, his ears picked up on a baleful sound, the sound of silk robes being carried on the wind. When he heard it, a burst of shock surged his soul and he nearly collapsed. In an instant, Sae and Yae both appeared next to him, holding each other tightly and looking terrified. They had heard it too.

Acting instinctively, the three of them tried to get away by slipping out the back of the ruins, but Ryokan had anticipated this and had the Tsuchihara ruins surrounded. Before long, they were confronted by the Ceremony Master himself, flanked by a dozen of his priests.

"How! I was so careful to keep my research hidden! How did you find us so quickly!" Itsuki demanded to know. Ryokan frowned, finding no amusement in the situation.

"You should've known that this plan wouldn't end well, Itsuki. It doesn't matter how careful you were; the Kureha shrine path has always been a troublesome escape route. Why else do you think it was sealed up two centuries ago?"

"What do you mean?" Sae asked from behind Itsuki. "I thought that the path was sealed when a pair of twins were killed in a cave in and..."

"Save your breath, Sae." Itsuki said, glaring at Ryokan. "I'm sure that there's more to that story that what either of our fathers have ever told us."

Now that was a comment that made Ryokan smile, albeit in a cruel and vindictive way.

"Smart boy, Itsuki. You are indeed right. The real truth is that no one has ever died in the Kureha shine path. The twins that were fabled to have died actually escaped on the night of their ritual. The village was nearly destroyed in the following summer as punishment for their treason. That was why the Ceremony Master at the time created the "cave in" story. He did it to make future twins fearful of the passage, but I can see that it wasn't enough to fool the likes of _you_."

Silence endured for a few moments as people tried to read each other's faces. It brought Yae some token optimism to know that twins had escaped before, but her own chances of escape were now bleak.

"Anyway, what does it matter? It's over, Itsuki. You have been caught, and now you will answer for your crimes."

"Dad!" Yae got his attention. She had elected to try to reach him one final time. "Please, don't make me do this; don't make SAE do this! Our family doesn't have to end like this; we could leave this village behind and..."

"And then the _world _suffers as the Malice is released from its prison. Don't try to make me feel sorry for my life's work, Yae. And you, Sae," Ryokan turned toward the younger daughter, tears streaming down her cheeks, "I read in your diary that you never wanted any of this to happen in the first place! I expected better from you!"

"But dad..."

"NO!" Ryokan's face had grown dark and skeletal, and his voice split the air like the crack of thunder. Everyone took a cautious step back from him, even Kanehira.

"I will not permit and further failure of our duties in this village, Yae; I will NOT permit you and Sae to run away! You will stay, you will perform the ritual, and you will _succeed_!"

Before they could flee, Yae, Sae, and Itsuki were all grabbed by the group of priests. Yae's temper flared and she attempted to resist, but she ran out of energy soon.

"I have heard enough. Imprison Itsuki in the storehouse, and take Yae and Sae to the Tachibana house. Bar the door and windows; commence the cleansing ceremony. Go now!"

The priests obeyed. Yae looked furious, Itsuki looked sorrowful, and Sae...Ryokan couldn't tell what she was feeling. Regardless, eventually all of them were led away to their destinations, leaving Kanehira and Ryokan standing alone.

"Ryokan?" Kanehira placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, wanting to comfort him, even after the argument. "Are you at peace with what has happened?"

"As much as I could possibly be. Thank you, Kanehira, for continuing to stay by my side." Ryokan said. There wasn't much doubt in his voice, but Kanehira sensed some unease still inside him.

Ryokan left in a hurry, leaving his friend standing alone, as he so often had in the past. Kanehira didn't linger long, taking only the time to utter a prayer for his son before departing as well.

xxXXxx

_Yae, Sae...everyone. I'm so sorry._

Itsuki's thoughts drifted through his head as he searched the storehouse that he had been locked away in. He had only been there for a few hours, but he knew deep in his soul that he would not be there much longer.

Ryokan had gotten one thing right about him; Itsuki was a failure in life, and he knew it. From the first day that he had been given purpose, Itsuki had not been able to uphold that purpose. He had tried to turn his brother, Mutsuki, into a butterfly, and failed. He had tried to protect his sister Chitose, and failed. He had tried to save Seijiro from the Kusabi ritual, and failed.

Now he had failed Yae and Sae as well. He had promised them freedom, but in the end all that he could deliver was the wrong end of a rope. This would be his last failure, though. At this point, he knew that his only possible redemption lied in the same fate that he had condemned his friends with.

Soon, he would find that fate and inflict it upon himself. He had already found the rope that he needed. As he tied it into knots and formed a noose that he slung around the rafters of the storehouse, Itsuki contemplated what death would feel like. Nothing good, probably, but he didn't deserve much mercy anyway.

Itsuki muttered a final prayer as he stepped onto a box in the center of the room and slid the rope around his neck.

_Mutsuki, I'm sorry. I couldn't keep our promise in the end, and I'm afraid that the worst will come to pass. Please forgive me._

Itsuki jumped off the box, and a burst of white light filled his eyes as the rope tightened. His neck hadn't broken, but all that meant was a few extra seconds before he had the release that he desired. Gradually, his vision went black, and Itsuki uttered a final sigh as he knew that his life was finally ending.

So, naturally, Itsuki was surprised to find that, after a few more seconds hanging from the rafters, his vision and perception were getting _clearer_! Something wasn't right; he should have died, but something was stopping it, holding him back.

Then he felt it. Something soft had inserted itself underneath his feet, blocking his path toward death. Itsuki tried to jump off of it, but the mysterious force just shifted underneath him, not giving up its quest to stop him.

Finally, Itsuki regained enough consciousness to see and hear the person that had saved his life. He looked down and met her eyes.

"Don't even _think_ about dying, Itsuki!" Kiyomi Kurosawa hissed at him, holding him up with all her might. "Not until you've saved my daughters!"

xxXXxx

Things are getting serious now. Stay tuned for more.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	16. Chapter 16: Suicide Run

My apologies for not updating for so long. It's been a busy month for me.

Fan of Games, you were wondering if I was going to write a one shot based on the twins who escaped the village in the past. I'm not planning to do something like that; so far the only one shot related to this story, is the one based on Ryokan's trip to the Kuze shrine.

Hope you all enjoy this chapter.

xxXXxx

Chapter 16: Suicide Run

Itsuki felt his heart hammering against his ribs when he poked his head out from the Tachibana house to survey the streets. Somehow, the entire village was even drearier than usual, and the streets were bare, as Itsuki had predicted they would be. It was all very familiar to him. It was just the way he remembered the village looking on the night of the Hidden Ceremony.

He had hoped that his memories of the event were correct, as the detail involving the veiled priests was important. All of them were supposed to be present at the ceremony, and despite Ryokan's discovery of their plan, the tradition hadn't been changed. All in all, everyone in the village was either assisting in the Kusabi ritual, or hiding in fear of it. The place would've seemed abandoned were it not for the several torches and braziers that cast their glow onto the houses.

"This is our last chance. Let's go." Itsuki spoke in a low tone, but he sounded barely hopeful. Beckoning out into the murky streets, Itsuki set off in a hurry toward the Kureha shrine path, with Kiyomi and the now-freed Yae and Sae all in tow.

The four rounded a sharp corner toward the village outskirts. Sae's grip on Itsuki's arm tightened into a blood-constricting vice as they came closer to the hill, and he didn't blame her, or even notice her reaction. He felt the same dread and anxiety that they all did. It was the day that they had waited an entire year for, and now its success could be decided in seconds. The Kusabi ritual would conclude soon, and when it did Ryokan and his priests would head straight for the Tachibana house to check on Yae and Sae. They were running out of time.

Finally, the old oak tree stood before them. Its twisting, knarled roots concealed the graves of the remaining, and Itsuki knew that the key to Yae and Sae's freedom, the unlocking mechanism, was waiting for them inside.

"You three head inside without me. Try to figure out how the device works." Itsuki stated curtly. He tried to turn away from them, but Sae's arm shot out and seized his shoulder, her kimono sleeve billowing in the wind like a tattered flag.

"What about you? Where are you going?" Yae asked, the worry tattooed onto her face.

"I still need to find the fourth crest. The mechanism won't work without it." Itsuki replied. Yae reluctantly nodded in approval, but when Itsuki tried to run away, Sae still held him. He could feel the unexpressed desires radiating off of her. Blushing, Itsuki came close to her and kissed her on the cheek.

"I'll be back soon, Sae. I promise." Feeling awkward, Itsuki avoided further contact and ran off toward the Tsuchihara house. A tear rolled down Sae's cheek as she watched him go. His goodbye was so...lacking.

xxXXxx

The sun overhead was barely rising when Itsuki arrived at the desiccated piles of wood that had been left over by the devastated house. He searched recklessly, but found exactly what he had found the last time he had searched: nothing. From one pile of rubble to the next, nothing of value was visible. Even when he became sure that he had found something, the optimism would always lead to bitter disappointment.

Finally, Itsuki's heart sank completely as he noticed a sight off in the distance. At the Kurosawa house, its looming structure barely visible against the rising sun, Itsuki could faintly make out a procession of dark, crimson robes fluttering in the breeze, all heading outside.

It dawned on him. The ritual had concluded. He was too late.

Itsuki's face melted into one of self-loathing, but he didn't have long to think about it before a chill came over him. Not an emotional chill; a real, very literal one so strong that Itsuki could see his own breath forming a stream of mist in front of his face.

His heart freezing in his chest, Itsuki turned, and promptly fell to the ground in terror as he met eyes with a translucent woman that had appeared before him without warning. Her body and face were pale, the lower half of her body disappeared into nothingness, and her eyes were blank and dark. Her head rested freely against her shoulder, broken bones poking out at the exposed, twisted skin of her neck. A Tsuchihara spirit, Itsuki realized, and probably not a happy one.

The woman stared down at him without moving an inch. Itsuki waited for his fate to come, almost happy to have the convenience of someone else ending his life for him. But the spirit showed no interest toward his self pity and tottered past him, heading toward the village outskirts. When she noticed that Itsuki was still sitting on the ground, the spirit turned toward him again and stared at him in an accusatory tone. Waiting for him to follow, he realized.

Itsuki continued to stare at her, confused. Visibly impatient, the woman glared at him and brought her arm up. As she pointed in the direction of the Kureha shrine, it finally made sense to him. The crest!

Jumping up from the ground, Itsuki followed the phantom across the village, ignoring the biting cold that followed her. He knew that it was just as likely that the tormented woman was leading him to his death, but he didn't have anything left to lose. May as well gamble one last chance on the possibility of a friendly spirit. Or, more likely, a spirit that hated someone else just enough to help that person's enemies.

She led him all the way to her own grave at the village's cemetery. _Yuzuki Tsuchihara_ was inscribed on the overgrown gravestone. Eyeing him once more, Yuzuki's spirit pointed a bony finger toward a small shrine not far from her tomb. Itsuki could see from where he stood that there was a little compartment inside of it.

He made his way slowly to the shrine and opened the compartment. When he looked inside to see what it contained, Itsuki smiled.

xxXXxx

Tense moments passed in the mausoleum underneath the tree as Yae and Sae mentally placed their bets on whether Itsuki or their father would reach them first. The mechanism Itsuki had told them to study was designed like a puzzle, with the four crests functioning as its pieces. Waiting in darkness for the last one to arrive was unbearable for all of them, but Sae in particular was beset by feelings of unease. Caught between the wishes of her dear sister and her own feelings on what was best, Sae had been gradually torn in half since the day that their plan started. Forced to allow destiny's wings to carry her into a future that she might not want, Sae's fear of solitude had returned to her, unwanted, unwelcome-even though Yae had promised to keep it away.

"The two children...chosen to heaven...to save the village." Sae recited a distant memory of hers, and tried not to sob with despair. The doubts were eating away at her. Yae sensed it, and turned her gaze to Sae to find her huddled in a ball in a corner of the room, shivering. She had never seemed so helpless before. Yae frowned with concern and walked over, kneeling down next to her.

"Sae...what's wrong?" Yae tried look into her sister's eyes, but her face was buried in her arms.

_She'll leave you. You know she will._

Sae shifted a little and muffled out a reply.

"I...I'm scared, Yae. I feel..." She searched for the correct word, which came quickly.

"...alone."

Yae closed her eyes and uttered a deep sigh. Moving closer and cradling Sae in her arms, she gave the simplest and most honest reply she could.

"Sae, I'm scared too, but we'll be okay, we're both getting out of here, _together_. I promise."

"Getting out isn't what I'm worried about." Sae gazed at Yae pleadingly, her eyes glimmering with tears about to escape. "It's what happens after that. What happens as our lives progress."

"You're still afraid that you'll be left behind." Yae finished for her. Set off by the words, Sae buried her head against Yae's chest and began weeping. Shedding tears of her own, Yae rocked gently as they held each other.

"Whatever happens today, Yae, promise me again that you'll never leave me. I don't want to be alone." Sae's tears stopped. She was at peace in Yae's arms, even as the concerned cries of villagers were beginning to resonate outside. That had always been their nature; together, they were strong.

"It's okay, Sae. I'm here for you. You aren't alone, and you never will be if I can help it. I promise." Yae whispered softly.

Sae had hoped that Yae would remember their promise to remain together. Feeling somewhat satisfied now, the two of them rested quietly for a moment. When Sae found the strength to speak up again, her voice was calm, almost inaudible.

_We will be together, Yae. I'll make sure of it._

"I love you Yae." Sae murmured, resting against her sister. Yae shifted a little and whispered back.

"Love you too."

xxXXxx

Ryokan gagged and shook his ceremonial robes violently at the ground, attempting to rid them of blood as he walked out of the Rope Shrine. With the first of two rituals completed, Yae and Sae locked in the Tachibana house, and Itsuki imprisoned where he would not cause trouble, Ryokan found it safe to rest easy.

Then he noticed a strange scene transpiring in front of the Tachibana house. On his way to check on his daughters, Ryokan had stumbled into a small mob of villagers, growing rapidly in size and volume, banging on the door of the house. All of them were shouting, their distorted voices overlapping.

"Where are the twins?"

"Where did you hide them?"

"Open up!"

"Get back, you imbeciles!" Ryokan shouted, easily clearing a path to his friend's door. Knocking on it gently, Ryokan was answered by a panicked looking Kanehira, brandishing his staff in the hopes of defending himself. Seeing that the Ceremony Master had greeted him instead of the mob, Kanehira dropped the staff quickly, relieved that he would not have to fight for his life. Still, Kanehira twitched nervously, knowing that he would have to give Ryokan the news.

"What's going on here?" Ryokan questioned.

"Well, sir, I...I mean...it's...Yae and Sae have escaped!" He shouted, half insane from anxiety.

Ryokan said nothing in return, but his eyes went wide and he pushed his way past Kanehira into the house and headed upstairs to Yae and Sae's room. The priest and villagers waited below, fearing the outburst that would follow. Sure enough, the sounds of crashing furniture were soon heard-Ryokan venting his renewed anger against the closest breakable objects. Amid the torrent of rage-fueled shouts, one clear command from the Ceremony Master roared out of the house loudly enough to be heard through half the village.

"Get to the Kureha Shrine! **Now!**"

xxXXxx

Yae and Sae screamed and rocketed out of the places where they sat as a horrible banging noise erupted from the wooden door of the crypt. The dirt floor was torn up by their feet as Yae and Sae scuffled back in terror as the door gave way to the pounding. It was the priests; they had been found!

"Get behind me!" Kiyomi commanded, stepping between her daughters and the door. With a twist of her arm, Kiyomi produced an ornamental dagger from the robes of her kimono, and Yae and Sae briefly marveled at the thought of their mother resorting to violence.

When the door came down, Kiyomi charged forward fearlessly, swinging her dagger and nearly hitting...Itsuki.

"The door was stuck! I'm sorry!" Itsuki briefly staggered back at the sight of Kiyomi's weapon, embarrassed at his unintentional scaring of everyone present. Fortunately, he had a way to exonerate himself. The fourth crest was in his hand.

"Great job, Itsuki!" Yae cheered.

"Knew you'd make it." Sae blushed.

"No time to celebrate. Did you figure out how to unlock the mechanism?" Itsuki waved their compliments off and approached the small monument in the center of the room. A small clicking noise echoed out when Itsuki inserted the crest, and Sae stepped forward and began turning the pieces. Yae and Kiyomi, meanwhile, peered out through the broken door to watch for trouble. In the center of the village, the mass of burning torchlight was still gathering, throwing lucid silhouettes of pitchforks and scythes against the walls of houses. Amongst the cacophony of voices, Ryokan was bellowing at the mob. Fortunately, his grip on them was still tenuous.

"One...two...three...four...no, that's not it. Come on, one...two.."

Sae contorted with frustration as she turned and revolved the four crests in every direction possible. She had found out the hard way that the gears of the machine would reset after six revolutions, and she just couldn't find the right combination. As the fear of failing her sister began to pull nervous tears from her eyes, Itsuki watched from afar. Alone with his thoughts for a moment, he knew that this was the last time he would see her.

"One...two...three **no**! That's not it. Come on, Sae, Yae's depending on you. They all are. I...I can't."

"Need help?"

Sae shivered from surprise as Itsuki knelt down behind her and ran a soft hand through her hair. Welcoming the contact, Sae felt her heart steady as her problems briefly became forgotten. Satisfied to see her relaxed, Itsuki slid his hands down until they rested on top of her own.

"Don't be scared, Sae. We can do this together."

Sae smiled delicately as Itsuki moved her hands along the mechanism, turning them slowly and deliberately.

"One...two...three...four...five...six."

A hollow rumble echoed through the tree as the levers and pistons grinded and pulled against each other. A cloud of stale, cold air began to flow into the small vault, signaling that the passage had been opened.

Releasing Sae and helping her up, Itsuki ran toward the door with both twins.

"Come on, Kiyomi. Let's go!" Itsuki shouted. Kiyomi looked up at him, not rising from where she sat.

"Give me a moment with Yae and Sae."

"There's no time." Itsuki said eagerly. He could hear voices coming from outside, and they were getting nearer.

"Make time! These are my daughters, and I want to say my goodbye to them."

Yae and Sae's blood froze. The word "goodbye" crept into their hearts and stole their breath. The two of them approached their mother with apprehension.

"You two are going to grow up and make me so proud, and I'll never be able to witness it." Kiyomi mused. Yae and Sae felt their stomachs knot even further.

"What do you mean? You're coming with us!" Sae's voice was almost hysterical. Kiyomi shed a tear at the sound of it, the first of many. Nonetheless, she looked up at her children and broke their hearts.

"Find a new home, you two. I'm staying behind."

"Did you hit your head on the ceiling or something! The Kureha shrine is _open_, we can all get out of here!" Yae shouted, her surprise obvious.

"I can't give up on Ryokan, not yet. He's changed so much in the last two decades, but the man that I married is still in there, somewhere. I have to search for him one last time, even if it costs me my life."

Yae's mouth went agape. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"That's why you're leaving us? Kiyo...mom...I still love my father too, but is he more important to you then we are?" Yae was trembling, and her voice stung with accusing tones.

"You're _all_ important to me, Yae! That's why I have to do this. If I can get to your father and make him see how wrong this is, then maybe I can convince him to leave the village behind. We'll get out of here and reunite with you someday. In time, I know he'll change."

"That time will never come!" Itsuki scolded her from across the room. "Kiyomi, I know how much you love him, but listen to reason. Ryokan is obsessed with this place; look at all that he's done already! Imagine what he'll do if he finds you helping us!"

"I know. He's committed such cruel crimes, crimes that he'll pay for someday. But I still have to try. You two would do the exact same thing for each other." Kiyomi looked back up at Yae and Sae, who both nodded, knowing that she was right. They knew that Kiyomi was chasing a fool's dream, but she was resolute and there was no way that she would leave. Resigning themselves to this fact, both of them tackled Kiyomi and hugged her one last time.

"Take care of your sister, Yae. And please, in case I never seen you again. Please, remember me."

Turning to the door where Itsuki waited, Yae and Sae gathered their strength and, without looking back, left their mother behind.

xxXXxx

Itsuki and the twins belted up the stone steps toward the Kureha shrine. They had wasted too much time in the tree, and now Ryokan and the villagers were close. Very close.

"I can see them! They're going into the shrine!" One of the priests shouted, pointing his staff up at the top of the hill. Itsuki ignored the angry cries and ushered Yae and Sae inside, closing the door behind him. Struggling to remember his last visit to the shrine, Itsuki eventually found the door to the secret passage opened near the back of the small structure.

"Come on." Itsuki beckoned them into the stone corridor. After about twenty minutes, the winding tunnel returned the trio to the earth's surface. Glad to have the sun casting its rays onto her again, Yae inhaled a breath of fresh air. At that point, anywhere away from the village was akin to nirvana.

Sae stood cautiously behind her, much less confident. The adrenaline-sourced bravery of earlier had long since faded, and looking out at the steep path that they would descend stole her resolve. She didn't want to do this, didn't want to go through with it, but her mouth refused to say so.

"Through here!" The voice was vaguely recognizable as Ryokan's, echoing through the passage that Yae and Sae had just come from.

"You two go on by yourselves." Itsuki turned defiantly toward the mouth of the passage. Before Sae could gather her thoughts into a coherent "goodbye", Yae took her hand and pulled her toward the forest path. Sae tried to resist for a moment and gazed at Itsuki longingly.

"Don't look back." Itsuki said, keeping his voice low. Words failed her, and eventually Sae turned away and set off into the forest with her sister, clutching her heart as if to keep it in place.

Satisfied, Itsuki turned back to the tunnel, where the contour of the mob was becoming visible. With little time to think, Itsuki formed a plan based on the only thing that he was entirely sure of: the villager's growing hatred of him.

xxXXxx

Ryokan let out an unchecked, almost primal snarl as he met eyes with Itsuki, that same traitor from before. Worse, Yae and Sae were nowhere to be seen. Though his darker half egged him on with the idea to draw a sword and ram it through Itsuki's skull, Ryokan knew that he would know which direction they had gone.

As the mob skidded to a halt in front of him, Itsuki put his plan into action.

"Quick! They went that way! If you hurry you can catch them!" Itsuki faked a sense of panic and pointed _toward_ the same trail that Yae and Sae had just diverged onto. Hushed words were briefly exchanged among the mob. Preying that Ryokan wouldn't see through his plan, Itsuki waited.

"He's lying...he must be!" One villager finally had the courage to speak up.

"He's trying to mislead us! They must have gone some other way!" A second villager echoed the first, and several more cries of agreement rang out. Itsuki concealed a sigh of relief. They were acting the way he had hoped they would.

The priests leading the group scanned the forest floor to find a possible escape route that Sae and Yae could've taken. Eventually, the mob headed in another direction and fanned out, nowhere near the path. Ryokan didn't follow them though, and even his rage was temporarily forgotten, overwritten by unease. Something wasn't right.

"When you told them to run along that path," Ryokan wondered, "you must've known that they wouldn't listen to you."

"That's right." Itsuki said. His triumphant smile confirmed Ryokan's fears. The direction that Itsuki originally pointed in had been the _right_ one.

"Wait, you fools! You're going the wrong...!"

In what had to be the last thing on earth that Ryokan ever would've foreseen, Itsuki tackled him to the ground from behind and forced his head into the dirt before he could finish calling out to the others. Uttering muffled cries of annoyance, Ryokan tried to free himself, but Itsuki had youth on his side, and he was able to hold the Ceremony Master down until the villagers were well out of ear shot. When he finally got back up, terror wracked his body as he realized he was too late.

"You..." Ryokan glared at Itsuki. Hearing hollow footsteps on approach, Ryokan turned back to the passageway to see a few straggling priests running toward him, panting and leaning on their staffs for support.

"I will make you pay for this." Ryokan cursed. If Itsuki felt any fear, then he didn't show it, nor did he resist as the priests seized him.

"Take him back to the storehouse and bolt the doors shut this time!" Ryokan bellowed. One of the priests obeyed without delay and led Itsuki back to the village, while the others waited to be given their own orders.

"You two stay here and wait for the other villagers and priests to come back. When they report that they haven't found anything, point them in the direction of that path and tell them to search again."

"Sir, shouldn't we search for them ourselves?" Two more leftover priests inquired. As much as he wanted to, Ryokan was forced to face reality.

"It won't make a difference. Yae and Sae are long gone, and we won't find them without an ample search party. Until we have one, there is something else that requires my attention."

The two priests exchanged nervous glances.

"Itsuki couldn't have escaped the storehouse in the first place. Not without help. I'm going to confront the one who _really_ caused this."

"Do you know who it is?" One of the priests asked.

Ryokan turned back to All Gods Village, a murderous glare in his eyes.

"I have my suspicions."

xxXXxx

The next chapter will be up later today. Reviews will be appreciated.


	17. Chapter 17: The Butterfly Falls

Chapter 17: The Butterfly Falls

It only took ten minutes of running to tire Sae out, and when it did, Yae didn't hold her hand anymore. Her sides hurt terribly, and she started lagging behind, but Yae didn't slow down. She called after Yae to wait for her, but Yae merely told her to speed up, barely even looking at her.

Trying to banish the growing alarm from her mind, Sae looked away from Yae, along the right of the path. Her eyes met the edge of a sheer ravine that didn't end, and as she realized what Yae was really starting to do, her recurrent feelings of confidence and shame collided and came to a head. This was her decisive moment.

_You're leaving me, Yae. Why? Didn't you promise..._

Yae was getting further and further from her, and Sae was slowing down. They were separating.

_But you still love me, Yae. I know you do._

Sae's look became embittered as fragments of mistrust and confusion swirled into a raging tempest of guile.

_If something were to...happen to me._

Sae tested the gravel beneath her feet. It was loose, slippery. She had an idea.

_I'm so sorry, Yae, but I swore that our promise would never break. I'll do anything to keep that oath, even if it means hurting us both. Anything..._

Committing herself to her plan, Sae begged that Yae would one day forgive her, just as she would forgive Yae for leaving her behind. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to fall over the edge of the chasm, into the darkness below.

Ryokan returned back to the Kurosawa manor with his two veiled priests serving as guards. The house was abandoned, except for one person that met him in the great hall.

"Hello, Ryokan." Kiyomi tried to sound as sweet as possible, but it didn't seem to be working. Her dear husband's face was contorted into an expression of confused rage. In fact, as he approached, already sure that she had been the one who betrayed him, it was all that he could do to stop himself from slaying her on sight.

_No...Ryokan, control yourself...don't listen to them._

Ryokan sat down across from her while the two priests watched from the back of the room.

"Kiyomi, were you the one who freed Itsuki from his cell?" Ryokan asked the question once, just to be sure.

"I had to, Ryokan. For our children." Kiyomi's voice fluttered at the thought of them. It gave her strength to know that they had escaped, but Ryokan was unsympathetic

"You betrayed me." He said flatly, masking his animosity.

"Please don't think of it that way, Ryokan. They were your children too." She reminded him, hoping that, she was getting through to him. He remained stone faced.

"Do you think I'm not aware of that? Kiyomi, we had gone over this so many times. We agreed from conception that whatever children we bore would be subject to..."

"Well that was before I started raising them!" Kiyomi elevated her voice, adding to the tension in the room. "I'm so sorry that I didn't realize it sooner, but what we do, in this village, is so wrong! We treat our own children like tools, objects to be locked away until we need them. But they're not tools, they're people."

"So are they." Ryokan pointed at the two priests at the back of the room, just two examples of the many villagers in All Gods. "Aren't their lives worth anything to you? It's a delusion of the mind to believe that Yae and Sae are more worthy of living simply because you and I know them. Don't ask me to go along with your plan to save two people at the expense of everyone else."

"That wouldn't be a problem if we simply left this place behind." Kiyomi offered.

"I've already explained why we can't leave this place. The Malice's hunger never ceases, and if someone doesn't do this job, then it will spread and consume the land until there is nowhere to hide!"

Deciding that the pointless debate had gone on long enough, Kiyomi took Ryokan's hands in her own and made her plea.

"Ryokan, please, for the sake of our family, leave this place behind!"

That was the proposal that finally set Ryokan off.

"You...dare to suggest that to me! You betray me, you risk the safety of this village, and now you expect me to abandon it as well! You have some nerve!"

Kiyomi ignored his growing rage. She couldn't stop now.

"Ryokan, I'm begging you, have compassion and come back to me! You used to be so different when we first met, so sweet, so...unlike what you are now!"

"I was an idle fool back then, and I nearly let this village down! Now, thanks to you, I am letting it down yet again!" Ryokan growled. Kiyomi still didn't stop.

"Ryokan, I was hoping I wouldn't have to bring this up, but what happened to you two weeks ago? I don't know exactly what it is, but I know you've been possessed, and I know you can't control it. It started ever since that day in the Hellish Abyss, and it hasn't stopped!"

Ryokan raised an eyebrow. He knew about it too, knew that the spirits were wielding influence over him at that very moment. He had already learned to live with it. In fact, he was beginning to _enjoy_ it.

"But you still know so much about the spirits, Ryokan. If you tried, you could defeat whatever is trying to take you over. You could rid yourself of them, and we could leave this place and find our children! We would be a family again, and you would have your life back! Don't you still want that!"

_She betrayed you, Ceremony Master. Take her soul in your hand and crush it. NOW!_

"No, Kiyomi, I don't and I'm embarrassed that I ever did!" Ryokan gladly obeyed the demon's order. With his words, Kiyomi found her hopes lost.

"I am well aware of the the Malice's presence within me, Kiyomi, and I don't care in the slightest! All they have done thus far is remind me of my duty, and frankly it scares me to think of how disastrous today would've been without them to guide me! Perhaps I was wrong when I treated them with hostility. Maybe I should welcome...!" Ryokan suddenly doubled over in pain, clutching his face in agony and screaming as the darkness fought for control of him. The two priests in the room, fearing that he was suffering a heart attack of sorts, ran forward to assist him, but Ryokan pushed them away and stood back up, having regained some of his sanity. The savage look in his eyes had vanished, but he still had precise plans to make Kiyomi pay for her betrayal.

"Seize her." Ryokan said calmly, clutching his head, which was still throbbing. The priests took Kiyomi by the arms, dragged her up, and brought her before him.

"Kiyomi, I have found you guilty of treason against the village. You may consider yourself disowned from my family, but because of our past together, your sentence will be light."

The two priests exchanged nervous glances as Ryokan paced around the room for a few moments, rubbing his chin in thought as he contemplated her punishment. It occurred to him that making an example of her might be useful.

"The priests will bind your hands and feet and imprison you within the cellar beneath this very house. There you will remain, without food or water, for exactly two days. If you can survive until then, you will be freed, given rations, and sent into exile. In any case, your name and history will be completely stricken from all records. I will _personally _burn every note, diary, and journal you have ever written, assuring that our descendants a century from now, assuming that we even have any, will never know that you ever existed. However..."

Ryokan cast a shadowed glance at Kiyomi that sent shivers up her spine. She knew he was about to tell her something horrible.

"During the next two days, tomorrow night to be precise, the Crimson Sacrifice will be performed using whatever we manage to scrounge up. If your treason leads to the Repentance, then you will be directly underneath the Hellish Abyss when it erupts. You will be one of the first to die, Kiyomi, and I guarantee you it won't be pleasant!"

Kiyomi wept softly.

_"Ryokan...please..."_

"I'm done talking. Take her away." Ryokan ignored her cries, shedding tears of his own as the priests dragged Kiyomi out of the room toward the cellar. Once he was alone, Ryokan allowed himself to mourn the loss of his family. Secretly, he _had_ longed for what Kiyomi wanted-to be with her. Then again, he had also longed to be with his brother, Hikaru, and look how that had turned out. Ryokan had done what he had to do back then, even if he didn't like it. It was the same now, even with his own family.

"Master! Ryokan-sama!" A new priest, covered in dirt from the search, appeared at the doorway. Either too tired or too unobservant to notice Ryokan's lack of desire for visitors, the shrill priest ran up to Ryokan, a nervous smile concealed behind his veil.

"This is a bad time." Ryokan droned.

"But, sir! It's very good news!" The priest beamed. Suddenly, Ryokan's mood picked up.

"What is it, priest?" Ryokan dared to ask, hoping that his luck had turned around.

"The twins have been found, Master. Both of them."


	18. Chapter 18: The Last Day

Thanks to Fan of Games and AuthorNicola for reviewing :)

xxXXxx

Chapter 18: The Last Day

_Yae..._

Surrounded by darkness. Blurry, but getting brighter and clearer. The sound of her own rushing blood drowning out the muffled voices surrounding her. The smell of incense nearby. Sae was waking up.

_Where..._

She choked on traces of blood in her mouth and tried to lift herself, but she was too weak and shocked even to move. Her leg, her whole body...all hurt so much.

_Where are..._

Sae tried to take in her surroundings. The light was too dim and reddish to come from the sun. The ground was soft like tatami. They were inside, probably her own house. That was good, she had been brought back. But what about...

_Yae! _

Sae gasped, suddenly finding herself fully aware again. Still not moving, Sae scanned the room searching for signs of her sister. No good, plenty of villagers and priests, but no Yae. Okay, still not necessarily bad, perhaps she was merely somewhere else in the house. Had she been injured too, maybe worse! No, not Yae, too strong. Probably being scolded by father for running away. Sae liked that idea; she giggled at it.

Until she saw him standing right in front of her, his face contorted and flustered with rage. Around him, the villagers stared on, silently watching him as he yelled at someone.

"But...but Master...I didn't mean to..."

"I don't appreciate being lied to by my own priests, Yokushi-kun!" Ryokan growled. Sae struggled to gain her bearings. She had an important question for father, and struggled to overcome her faintness so she could speak.

"I'm sorry, Master! Before I left to give you the report, the villagers told me that they would certainly find her by the time night fell! I thought it would be best if I simply told you that she had been found."

Ryokan looked like he was ready to lunge. The priest shrunk down, too afraid to say anything else. In the crowd, various villagers shook their heads at the priest's ungainly attempt to defend himself, secretly praying that Ryokan wouldn't buy his story and turn on _them_ instead. After a second or two, Ryokan sighed.

"Forget it. I'll deal with you later. For now, we have bigger problems. Now, will someone kindly give me the _actual report_ of what happened in the forest!" Ryokan snarled. Sae perked up a little, she wanted to hear it as much as he did. It wasn't surprising that Kanehira was the one to step forward, but Sae couldn't help noticing the shimmering lines on his face that had been carved from fresh tears. Something bad had happened.

"Yae...where..." Sae finally mumbled loudly enough for the others to hear. The villagers stared at her. Ryokan looked down at her for a moment as well, his expression devoid of pity, before turning back to Kanehira.

"We're waiting..." He commanded. Kanehira nodded and spoke.

"Ryokan-sama, Sae-sama was found as you currently see her. She had fallen into a small gorge in the forest. We were able to recover her, and her injuries are minor. She'll be walking again by tomorrow. However..." Kanehira paused. He didn't want to say it, not with Sae lying right there. "...Yae...was never recovered. I'm sure she's long gone by now."

People in the room turned toward Sae to see what her reaction was. Silent from shock, Sae recycled the words in her mind over and over, trying to make sense of them. After everything they had been through together, all the moments shared as twins, was Sae really supposed to believe that Yae had simply abandoned her? Were things really as bad as they seemed?

"Wh...what!" Was all that she could say. The villagers surrounding her who hadn't participated in the search let out gasps and cries of worry as well, and soon the room was in an escalating uproar. A few good souls in the room knelt down and tried to offer Sae their condolences.

Ryokan, however, had bigger problems, and he ignored the turmoil in the room and tried to think. With the word that Yae had been lost, Ryokan was already worried over his village's chance of survival. He had no plan for what to do in a situation like this. No Ceremony Master ever had. But they needed something, and they needed it now.

"Master, what are we going to do?" One of the priests next to him whispered in an anxious voice. Sae looked around with wide eyes, suddenly loathing the gall, the _malice_, of all those who dared to mumble "Yae left her sister to die" in her presence. They were wrong. They had to be.

_You couldn't have broken your promise, Yae. I'm sure the others are just saying these awful things because they're scared._

_You'll come back for me, Yae. I know you will. Just like we promised...together always._

"Enough! Get out of my home! NOW!" Ryokan roared, pointing at the crowd of villagers. Within seconds, they were pouring out of the room. When they had all gone, only a few veiled priests and Sae were left behind, all staring at Ryokan and waiting for his plan. He didn't like what he had come up with, but the Hellish Abyss would erupt any day now. They had to act before it happened.

"We will perform the ritual with Sae alone."

No one had been prepared for that. They all gawked at him in surprise, but Sae in particular couldn't believe what she was hearing. His suggestion enraged her inwardly; she knew that Yae was going to come back and make fools out of them all, but she couldn't force herself to say so.

Tired, and not seeing the point of lingering any longer, Ryokan made his way toward the door that led to his chamber, intending to turn in for the night. Before he did, though, Ryokan stopped in the doorway and uttered a final whisper that only Sae managed to hear.

"Yae, why did you leave?"

xxXXxx

Very few people in the village slept soundly that night. Entire families slept together as an additional means of sharing their last moments alive. Ryokan, having no family left to sleep with, excluding Sae who was currently not allowed to leave her room, tossed and turned until he was awoken very early by the chimes of crimson butterflies close by. When he rose from bed, several of them were fluttering around him, silently cursing him for dooming Sae to die, not by her sister's hands, but by the end of the rope that she would hang from.

Ryokan wasn't in the mood to have his last night interrupted, and a pillow thrown by him at the butterflies sent them scattering in various directions. When he tried to go back to sleep, a creaking noise from the next floor down interrupted him. It was loud, too loud to simply be his house groaning with age. Someone was wandering his halls.

On any other night, Ryokan would've ignored the sound and went back to sleep. On this night, however, there was every possibility that Sae had found a way to undue the lock on her room, and was now trying to flee the village and reunite with her lost sister. Realizing that it was best to be safe, Ryokan dragged himself out of bed and threw on his robes.

When he stepped into the halls, however, something seemed out of place. His house carried the same ancient, foreboding curtain of misery that it had when the Malice first took control of him, and it looked centuries old. Was the Malice punishing him for his failures? Was more torment necessary?

Whether that was the case or not, Ryokan made his way down into the house, toward the source of the noise. He had to be sure.

He arrived at the Kurosawa altar room just in time to catch a shadow being thrown against the nearest wall. A figure, likely a woman by the curves of the umbra, was making its way down the staircase into the hallways beneath. Ryokan still suspected Sae, but why would she be heading _toward_ the Rope Palace?

Odd; he didn't hear the sound of her kimono dragging either.

Ryokan ran through the halls and outside to find the girl dashing along one of the two identical paths that led into the shrine. She seemed to be increasing her pace and Ryokan had to hurry to keep up with her.

"Hey, you! Stop!" Ryokan commanded, but she acted as if she hadn't heard him.

The girl ran across the path with Ryokan close behind. He struggled to get a good look at her but couldn't. Up ahead were the twin doors that led in, and since one could only open if the other was opened as well, Ryokan was confident that the girl would be forced to stop and confront him.

Instead, the stranger opened the door in front of her and ran in without trouble. How did she do that?

Before the door could creak shut, Ryokan caught it and ran in after her. He found her at the far end of the shrine, desperately trying to force open the double doors that led to the spiral hallway. He could hear her grunting and groaning as she tried to pull the doors open. Her voice sounded like...Yae's!

"Who are you? Why do you run?" Ryokan didn't let himself get optimistic, and he approached the girl slowly from behind. She continued ignoring him, frenzied and terrified at this point, until he got close enough to grab her shoulder and turn her around.

That's when things really became confusing. In terms of flesh, the girl really was Yae's spitting image, with very minor differences that few people would be able to notice. Her clothes, though; they were like nothing he had seen before, and definitely not something that would have come out of All Gods. The ivory colored skirt, black stockings, and red and white blouse were truly bizarre and disgustingly revealing for a girl as young as her. Yae would've regretted wearing clothes like this in his village. They were the type of things that outsiders wore. This girl must have been an outsider as well, who wandered into the village by mistake.

Not sure what to do with the scared looking outsider, Ryokan approached the girl and tried to apprehend her. Before he could, the girl struck a defensive pose and held something up in front of her. Squinting to make out its features in the darkness, Ryokan realized that it was the damn camera that Seijiro had brought! Why was she acting like it would save her life?

"Enough of this. Drop that camera and come with..."

That was all he managed to get out before the girl hit the camera's flash button. Expecting nothing to happen, Ryokan was instantly crumpled to the floor, screaming in agony as colossal ridges of light shot out of the camera and enveloped him. Blind and deaf from shock, Ryokan shut his eyes tight, desperately trying to gain a sense of what had attacked him. Not waiting for this to happen, the girl fired another flash, and then another. He could feel his flesh burning from the intense heat as the torturous glare tore his strength from him. Unable to recover from the attack, Ryokan blacked out.

He saw spots for thirty minutes when he woke up. When Ryokan finally had his eyes back, he took in his surroundings and felt duel surges of shock and relief to find himself back in his own bed, fallen over the side with covers and pillows draped on top of him. No sign of danger or damage was evident in the room.

"Another vision..." Ryokan mumbled drearily, rubbing a bump on his head as he sat up.

xxXXxx

The last day had finally come. Ryokan took his time getting up, not eager to hurry the day along. Dressing in his ceremonial robes, Ryokan left home and headed for the Tachibana house. Once the afternoon came, he would be busy attending to the final details of the ritual, but until then he knew how he wanted to spend his morning.

Kanehira greeted Ryokan at the door. He hadn't been able to sleep either.

"Would you like to watch the sunrise with me, old friend? This one may be our very last."

Kanehira nodded happily and walked with him back to the front garden of the Kurosawa estate, where the two watched the sun crest over the village. The spectrum of hues was indescribable, and the omnipresent realization that they might never see the sky again after that day only made it more impressive.

"I had one of those visions last..." Ryokan stopped suddenly. Kanehira looked over at him, waiting for him to finish. He wouldn't, though. It was their last day, and for once, Ryokan had no desire to bother Kanehira with his own problems. Especially when Kanehira had much greater heartache to deal with.

"Listen, about your son..." Ryokan started, trying to find the right words. Reacting to the memory of what had happened, Kanehira turned away from Ryokan quickly, not wanting the Ceremony Master to see him cry. Itsuki had been found dead in the storehouse yesterday, before Sae had even been caught. He had given suicide another try, and this time no one had been there to save him.

"I'm so sorry, Kanehira." Ryokan put a gentile hand on Kanehira's shoulder. Personally, he had wanted to say something more along the lines of "good riddance", but Kanehira didn't deserve to hear that, especially not now. Seeing his family members serially stripped away from him had given Ryokan a new perspective. He had realized just how important his only friend was to him, something that he had never considered before.

"Don't blame yourself, Ryokan. It was never your fault. Itsuki had been...unstable...since the day his Crimson Sacrifice failed. He was doomed to die by his own hand ever since. I just wish that I could have helped him." Kanehira wiped the tears away from his face and mustered a small smile. Ryokan sat back and tried to relax.

"So...any final regrets before we step into the unknown together?" Ryokan chuckled at his vacant-minded attempt to make small talk out of the end of the world. Kanehira thought for a moment and shrugged.

"Not many. Now that Itsuki is gone, Chitose is the only family I have left." Kanehira said, his eyes hiding the sorrow.

"Well, that's one more than I'll have when this day is done." Ryokan reminded him. Somehow, Ryokan didn't sound like he really cared. "Do you ever worry about her?"

"Who, Chitose?" Kanehira asked. "Sometimes, but she's tougher than she looks, resilient. Did you know that she can catch fish with her bare hands?"

"I don't believe you." Ryokan stated flatly. The two exchanged looks before bursting into shared laughter.

"Eh, I guess neither of us has much to lose, even if Chitose still feels like the world to me. Yet, we keep on doing what we do in this village." Kanehira remarked. Ryokan picked up on his hidden desire to see the killing end.

"The others, in this village and outside it, have much more to lose. What we do has to happen." Ryokan stated peacefully, but Kanehira didn't look sure. He looked from Ryokan back to the sky as the light of the sun banished the remaining darkness of night.

"I don't know, old friend. Sometimes I just wonder what might happen if we acted on our hopes instead of our fears. If we would dare to face down the darkness and tell it 'no more'."

Ryokan listened to his friend and wondered if anything like that was really possible. He knew that it was just optimistic nonsense, but Ryokan nodded to his friend anyway. He didn't want to waste the morning on an argument. There had been too many of those lately.

"Listen, Kanehira, I need to request a favor of you." Ryokan was suddenly serious.

"What is it?" Kanehira asked.

"When the afternoon comes, my daughter will be taken by the priests and prepared for her ceremony. After that, she will be led back to my home, and the ritual will begin. Between these two events, I want you to tell Makeibo-san, Ouroki-san, and Toro-san to escort her to the storehouse. Sae-jukeisha has been wanting to see Itsuki. It's time that she got her request.

Kanehira felt his heart skip a beat.

"But...why? Itsuki is dead. Won't that just make her feel worse?"

"Maybe." Ryokan admitted. "But she needs to see it for purposes of closure. Besides, I want her to know the result of her crime.

Kanehira gulped and felt a pang of guilt for Sae, but he nodded after awhile and accepted the order.

"Hello, father. What's going on out here?" Ryokan jumped out of his seat and wheeled around to see Sae standing in the doorway behind him, rubbing her eyes sleepily. It didn't look like she had overheard them, and even better was the fact that her injuries seemed okay. She was still limping, but she was on her feet nonetheless.

Her presence darkened the atmosphere of the courtyard, though. The memory of what she had done was still fresh in Ryokan's mind.

"Kanehira, you have your order, now go."

Kanehira nodded to Ryokan and tried to walk off. When he did, though, Ryokan stopped him so that he could express one final thought.

"Thank you for your friendship, Kanehira. Whatever happens today, whether it leads us into a new tomorrow, or into unmarked graves, know that I never would have gotten this far without you." Ryokan clasped his hands together and bowed deeply.

"Oh, of course you would have. Not as stylishly, of course." Kanehira added with a chuckle before bowing as well and then setting off across the bridge. Finally alone with her father, Sae took a seat next to him and looked up at the resplendent hues along the horizon. Ryokan didn't look at her and glared up at the sky. He was still furious about what had happened.

"Father, I'm sorry for yesterday." Sae began apprehensively. He was so mad at her, she could tell. Ryokan nodded in response but said nothing, still avoiding her eye contact. Sae bit her lip; the injuries. Ryokan needed to know what had really happened that day.

"My fall wasn't accidental. I thought...if maybe I got hurt...Yae would come back to help me, and the villagers would have been able to find both of us. Then we'd get to complete the ritual and become one. That's what we should have done to begin with. What I always wanted."

Ryokan raised an eyebrow and finally twisted his body to the side to look at her. Now Sae was avoiding his gaze, which came down on her in silent accusation.

Chiefly, he was puzzled over why she hadn't simply refused to run. Sae cast her glance down at her feet. She could already imagine the red cord that her father would tie to her, and hated the thought that its other end would trail off without a twin to attach it to.

"I wanted to stay behind, father, but I just couldn't do what Yae did not want. I wasn't strong enough to act against her desires. I wish I was, dad. I wish I was more like you and her, but I just don't have that strength, and now that my last day is here, I don't think I ever will."

She had wanted the confession to cheer him up. Not only did it not do that, but it did the opposite, and Ryokan frowned bitterly at her words as new, terrible rage billowed inside him. She had _wanted_ to stay, but to hear, in her _own words_, that Sae had willingly ignored those feelings, her duty, her desires to be with her twin, simply because Yae had told her to, was the worst insult that Sae could have ever burdened him with. _Worse_ than simple betrayal; Ryokan felt embarrassed to call her "daughter".

Sae felt his revulsion radiate toward her and yelped slightly in panic.

"Oh, but it's going to be fine, dad!" Sae said hurriedly, wondering what she had said to aggravate him so much. "Don't worry. Yae will come back for me before nightfall, and everything will be okay, for both of us. I'll bet she's gonna come rocketing down that bridge any second now!"

Sae stared out at the bridge. Silence, until something appeared from the distance and made its way across. Not Yae; they were too large and robed in crimson silk. The troop of veiled priests had come to take Sae away, to begin the preparations. Ryokan breathed a sigh of spiteful relief at not having to listen to her anymore.

When they looked back at each other, Ryokan shook his head at her. His eyes said _'leave her behind, as she did you'._

"Don't think like that." Sae sensed his mordancy. "She will come back, she has to. I know she will. I..."

Sae choked as the dead silence was getting to her. The priests on the bridge were getting closer; in less than a minute they would rip her away from her father and lead her away, and after she had been cleansed, she would not be allowed to talk to anyone ever again. This was his last chance to speak to her. Did he really hate her enough not to?

"Father, please, talk to me. This is my last chance to hear from anyone that I've ever cared about. So say something, anything, even if it's to say that you hate me! I don't want to be alone..." Sae begged as the veiled priests finally arrived.

Ryokan stared straight into her eyes.

"Sae...you _are_ alone." Ryokan said without a trace of repentance in his voice. He ignored her obvious heartache, finding himself hating her for her weakness. Whether or not the Malice was playing a role in his loathing didn't matter to him anymore. Its rage and his own, with those final cruel words, had blended into one deluge of ire that terrified even the observing priests.

_The world isn't going to become a kinder place only for you, Sae. You will learn that. The hard way._

"Prepare Sae-jukeisha for the ritual." Ryokan commanded with a booming tone to his voice. The priests nodded nervously and led Sae off to be cleansed. Ryokan bid his daughter one final goodbye look, and when he did, she saw his face appear as the ghastly, vacuous skull that had previously been visible only to him.

And then she was taken away. Once she was out of earshot, Ryokan fell to his knees and muttered to himself the thing that he should have told her.

"Sae, I hope that she comes back too."

xxXXxx

When the night finally came, with no sign of Yae, the Ceremony Master was greeted by over half the priests in the village, with Sae at their front. Her eyes were void of hope. Itsuki's death, it seemed, had been the last bitter straw.

Ryokan tied Sae's sash around her waist, allowing the end that should have gone to her sister to fall to the floor. She dragged it behind her as the procession marched on toward the shrine and, after it, the Abyss itself. Finally feeling some remorse for his daughter's waning life, Ryokan offered her one final look of apology, knowing that she probably needed it. Yae's absence was weighing down on her.

Standing before the double doors leading into the underground, Ryokan stopped the procession once and allowed the others to gather their nerves. Sacrifices were never easy, but this one's dread was truly palpable, and the priests present were all evidence of that. So was Ryokan; he knew that there was no turning back now. The ground, by then, had been rumbling constantly and growing ever louder. He had made his choice, and he swore on his father's grave that he would bear the consequences, good or bad. Breathing a sigh of acceptance, Ryokan pulled open the doors and led them in.

Total darkness greeted them. Even the candles on the walls had been blown out recently, thin wisps of smoke coming off of their ends. The ground was still shaking beneath them. The procession did not respond or pause, but instead simply carried on through the whole curving tunnel, plunging deeper and deeper into the ground. They could all feel the ancient hatred of the Malice from there, from the room deep below that contained the Abyss, as well as from Ryokan himself. His possessors were angry at him. He was angry at Sae. In a way, she was angry at Yae. And Yae was angry at...him; a chain of bitterness that wrapped itself around his heart.

"The ritual, where two twins become as one." Ryokan mumbled quietly as the hall expanded into a massive cavern. Sae pretended not to hear him.

For a moment, Ryokan lost himself in memories that, now, seemed joyous. The chamber was as beautiful and imposing as he had remembered it during his own sacrifice almost fifty years ago. In the massive room, rimmed by steep crags, the mourners had still lit the thousands of candles that surrounded the glyphs in the center. The beds were there too, the ones that he had strangled Hikaru on. Sae would not even get that pleasure, and as they passed by them, Ryokan moved in front to block her view of them. _Stay focused, Sae. Yae is not here for you._

Finally, they reached their destination, and the rumbling stopped. The Hellish Abyss, darker than ever, but suddenly calm, conniving, waiting. In front of it, the final, huge torii gate that stood as a silent watchmen, the one that would assist in Sae's death. It was sturdy; it would support her weight. The mourners had hung the rope in advance. Sae saw it dangling there, a silent executioner patiently awaiting its victim.

The priests were mortified of remaining in the place much longer, and they quickly placed Sae in the noose and prepared to drop her, waiting only for the Ceremony Master to give the order. Ryokan mentally braced himself and looked up at Sae. Lost in thought, wondering if she could still become a butterfly alone. Lost in fantasy, still watching the entrance, even then expecting Yae to come speeding down at the last second to save her from the rope. Lost in time, trying desperately to recall, once more, the happy memories that seemed forgotten.

The Ceremony Master took one final deep breath and shut his eyes.

_Please...Sae...save our village. _

He nodded in approval, and allowed Sae to fall.

xxXXxx

The mourners cut her body down, and Ryokan got a final look at her corpse before they took it to cast into the Abyss. He didn't hate her now. He couldn't, knowing that she had died in the worst possible manner. Too late for tears, though. Now, all they could do, is wait and hope.

Amidst taut silence, Ryokan barely reacted when a bolt of light pierced his mind, sending another vision washing through him:

_Darkness, the bottom of a deep pit. The Abyss..._

_Sae wanders through it, confused and alone. Would the demons accept her...?_

_But then, something else nearby. Chained to the ground by its own ropes, the creature howls in pain and rage. Massive, monstrous, but veiled by a coverlet of shadows. Impossible to make out who..._

_It beckons to her with a knarled hand. Sae approaches, curious..._

_The creature talks to her, it plays on her fears. It offers her what she did not have in life, and Sae feels the Malice pouring in..._

_A desire for revenge. A promise of power accepted. Villagers that needed to die. The ritual had failed for the last time._

_"Forever. I'll wait forever."_

Ryokan awoke to the sounds of hysteria and mayhem. He was sprawled out on the ground, being shaken violently by the tremors of the Abyss, now worse than ever, but also by a priest who was desperately trying to wake him up. Seemingly, he had blacked out while standing and fallen over.

Staggering to his feet and trying not to fall over again, Ryokan knew exactly what was happening, and that it would not stop until they were all dead. But the Repentance didn't truly scare him, until he saw the subject of his vision staring back at him with a face that was unpleasantly familiar.

"S...S...Sae!" Ryokan went pale with fright. Admiring the scene in front of her, the new and improved Sae Kurosawa laughed demonically and spread her arms wide. Three short words were all that she needed to send the congregation fleeing in terror.

_"It...has...begun!"_

xxXXxx

Thanks for reading. This was a big chapter, and a lot of stuff happened, so don't hesitate to ask if there are questions that I can clear up. We'll finally see the Repentance in the next chapter.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	19. Chapter 19: The Repentance

Thanks to AuthorNicola and FanofGames for reviewing. Sorry for not updating in awhile.

Well, we're at the moment of truth, so let's go on with the story.

xxXXxx

Chapter 19: The Repentance

Sae hovered before her father and the terrified priests as the cavern lit up with iridescent light and filled with fire. Perched proudly on a scaffold of ash, Sae threw her head back and cackled. Though she still bore the same likeness that she had in life, Sae had been irrevocably deformed by the embrace of the Hellish Abyss and Ryokan saw without doubt the she was no longer his daughter. She remembered her crass treatment in life and consequently had been drained of any sorrow or remorse. Even her appearance, though her "body" still appeared frail, bespoke of power and a desire for revenge. She was pale and cold. Her eyes were a dull yellow, concealed partially by the shadow cast down by her short, jet black hair. The corners of her mouth were sharp and curled into a mad smile, and all around her a fog of viscous blood trailed.

Sae's laughter filled the room, but in its presence existed another voice, even angrier than hers and not showing even a trace of her insane joy. Ryokan continued to stare at the Hellish Abyss, wondering what else it would throw at them. When Sae stopped laughing and lowered her head, he saw it floating behind her.

Huge, the monster towered over Sae, smiling at Ryokan with a mouth of broken, cracked teeth. It had a vaguely human appearance, but the creature was gnarled and deformed, with dry, cracked skin and mangled claws where its hands were supposed to be. A column of starched, gray hair trailed off of its head. The creature was surrounded by smoke and gray mist and wore dull gray robes that fused into its dry exterior almost seamlessly. From its body protruded hooks and other torture implements never removed from it before death, including a knife merged with its left hand. The earsplitting shriek which sent Ryokan into a spasm of panic emanated from its mouth.

It was the sacrificed Kusabi, returned from the dead. It was Seijiro.

"**Ruuuuuun**!" Ryokan broke the tension in the room with a shout that somehow sounded above the Kusabi's screeching. No one needed to be told again and the priests scattered instantly, their screams mixing with the Kusabi's roar. As Ryokan turned to run as well, Sae and Seijiro left the abyss and began the slaughter.

The two mourners who had thrown Sae into the Abyss met the same fate as the Kusabi dug its claws into their shoulders and hurled them into the darkness behind him. Sae, meanwhile, grinned and took hold of something in her right hand. It looked like the sash that Ryokan had tied to her, but it had turned the same dark shade of crimson as the air around her, and the far end was tied into a noose. When Sae threw it, the rope snagged around the neck of the closest priest. A pull of her arms shattered the man's neck and sent him flying across the room. Sae floated forward and pulled the rope back up, flailing it around like a mace as she searched for a new victim. And then she set her sights on her father.

_"I've spent so long hiding from people." _

Sae finally spoke, but her father paid no heed as he reached the door. One of the last out who wasn't already dead, Ryokan was stopped in his tracks by a wall of oily mist that rose above him and blocked the stairway. When he turned back to the Abyss, Sae was there.

_"Now...let them hide from __**me**__!" _

Sae threw the cord, and Ryokan's life flashed before him. He barely noticed when Kanehira reached from behind, through the mist, and pulled him in.

Both of them were fine on the other side; the mist had apparently been a trick. But neither of them dared to pause for even a moment, and they both tore through the crumbling staircase, passing other, slower priests on the way. Back in the chasm, Sae merely smiled as the Kusabi lumbered past her, eyeing the fleeing priests eagerly.

_"Now...who's the weak one?"_ Sae whispered, snickering as the cave around her began to collapse. In a sudden flash, Sae disappeared.

xxXXxx

The great sacrificial chamber was on fire when the priests emerged into it, and the entire floor, basically a large pillar in the center of a larger hole to nowhere, looked ready to topple. One lurching of the ground was enough to send a few careless priests over the edge, Kanehira nearly being one of them had Ryokan not grabbed his hand in time. Other priests, made vulnerable by their flowing robes, caught fire, and the Kusabi stayed close behind, flaying and tearing at anyone not able to outpace it.

"Keep moving! Don't stop!" Ryokan barked at the retreating congregation, or possibly just at Kanehira. The surviving priests starting filing haphazardly into the next stairway corridor, the one that led to Ryokan's altars at the surface. Ryokan stole a look behind him before entering the passage, and regretted it immediately. The Kusabi, barely focusing on the other priests around it, was eyeing him intensely with rage carved on its frightful mask of a face. Ryokan recognized the desire for revenge when he saw it and didn't look back again. But where was Sae? She still wasn't visible in any part of the surroundings, and he wasn't dumb enough to believe that she had left altogether. Not seeing her was scarier than seeing her. Something wasn't right.

Ryokan snapped out of his rampaging thoughts when something tugged on him from behind. Trying not to express terror, Ryokan turned on his heels and prepared to resist whatever had caught him. It was only then that he noticed the true source of his being slowed down; Kanehira, whom Ryokan had been hauling along the entire way, wasn't looking at the path ahead. He was looking behind, discerning the ethereal fog of the Kusabi now far from them, and thinking deeply to himself. When he and the final Ceremony Master had at last reached the end of the passage, with the doorway leading out gratefully in view, Kanehira stopped and _turned around. _Incredulous but reflexive, Ryokan's arm shot out to grab his.

"What are you doing!" The old man shouted, tugging in the direction of the door. Kanehira still pulled back toward hell.

"This isn't going to work, old friend. You may be fit for your age, but this is the Repentance. The Kusabi won't stop until everyone is dead, especially you, and I'm sure he's only the beginning."

"What are you suggesting?" Ryokan snapped as the other priests caught up to them and fled out of the hall, not stopping to even look. Fear had did its number on them all, and a few had horrific wounds, received from shrapnel, fire, or worse.

"Get to safety, Ryokan. I will stay here and hold it off. I can buy you and the others the chance to escape."

"That's suicide! How long do you expect to last? Stop this idiotic charade!" The remaining priests finished fleeing, leaving Ryokan and his friend alone on the steep stairs. It was disheartening to see how few of them were still alive, because Kanehira was right. This was only the beginning.

"Ryokan, don't worry about me. This has to be my duty. You were our Ceremony Master. If anyone can save what is left of this village after the Repentance is over, it's you."

"Get out of there **now**!" Ryokan ignored his friend completely and pulled further toward the door. The Kusabi, deprived of new victims, was dancing through the air faster than ever. The awful howling noise it produced was growing.

"Ryokan, please! You must let me do this!"

"No, I won't lose you! You're all I have left! You're the only person who has ever truly been at my side..."

"Not true." Kanehira thought of Kiyomi.

"...you're the only thing that keeps the Malice at bay! I can't let the demons control me again!"

Ryokan mentally struck himself for blurting it out, but Kanehira understood Ryokan's fear completely. The Malice had been the entity to take his wife from him. Still, he knew what he had to do. Kanehira slowly pried Ryokan's fingers from his arm.

"Don't let the Malice control you, Ryokan. You don't need me for that...you never did. You are your own man."

Kanehira thought for a moment, sighed, then said something else.

"If you must save someone...please...save Chitose."

"What?" Ryokan asked a stupid question. He didn't have the peace of mind necessary to think his words through. At the bottom of the staircase, the Kusabi finally appeared, sailing up at them with claws extended.

"She's the only family I have left, friend. Please, if you can, do me this one last favor." Kanehira's eyes were pleading.

"I will, Kanehira. I promise." Ryokan spoke without truly thinking. Kanehira and Ryokan moved out of the passageway and into the Rope Palace. Kanehira was still not leaving, he merely needed more space with which to maneuver, so as to hold the Kusabi off for as long as possible.

Life's steady ticking stopped for a moment as the two friends faced each other, most likely for the last time. Ryokan refused to cry, but he did reach out to hug his friend, if only briefly. Kanehira didn't think about what a rare occurrence it was for Ryokan to show affection when he returned the gesture.

"Good luck to you, Kanehira." Ryokan said unevenly.

"To you as well, friend. Life has been..."

Death itself interrupted Kanehira's talk of life. A massive roar emanated from the other side of the door. The Kusabi, ignorant of its own incorporeal form, pulled itself through the doorway with enough force to crack the stone around it. The Kusabi stared up at the torture device suspended from the ceiling. It had returned to the place of its own death and, drawing upon that rage, the phantasm grew and reared up to its full height. The smoldering goliath stood at least eight feet tall and its ropes, former tormentors, now whipped out on behalf of the behemoth like choleric serpents. The fumes around it took form, coalescing into twisted, skeletal faces.

"Get out of here! **Go**!" Kanehira pushed Ryokan toward the shrine's exit and charged the Kusabi in order to draw its attention. The brute welcomed a willing victim and raised its arm to strike, but Ryokan didn't look back as he departed the room. Across the twin bridges outside and through his house's hallways Ryokan ran, up toward the Kurosawa altar room that connected to the rest of his house and, after that, the front and rear entrances. The hallways were all deserted. Was that fortunate?

Ryokan rounded the final corner and ascended the short flight of wooden stairs into the altar room, panting the whole way.

Sae was waiting for him. She was standing not far from the very altar that she had prayed at hours earlier.

_"I had waited so long...so long to become one with her..."_ Sae hissed, her yellow eyes surveying him, searching for injuries, and weakness.

_"...you failed us, father."_

"I'm not your father. Not anymore." Ryokan didn't see the point in talking to the forerunner of his village's destruction. He raced toward the door, and so did she. However, Sae was much faster than the Kusabi, and her fingers grazed her former father's back as he attempted to flee.

It was pain like he had never felt before. The icy, essence-draining shock of her smallest touch was staggering and when Ryokan limped out of the room, he was clutching his shoulder in pain. Sae cackled madly at the sight.

When Ryokan made his way into the next set of hallways, he took heart that his house's exit, one step closer to escaping the nightmare, was near. He was thrown away from his confidence, however, when the shaking of the earth intensified, tossing him off balance. Even as he was far from the Hellish Abyss, the tremors caused by it were insurmountable now and Ryokan had to slow down simply to prevent a fall. Pressing his hands against the trembling walls for support, Ryokan took each step as if it was his last. Looking back, however, Sae had re-appeared in the halls and was closing the gap between them _fast_.

Ryokan panicked. His breath was becoming ragged and every beat of his heart propelled a dagger through his chest. Unable to stand another of her caresses, Ryokan threw caution to the wind and tried to sprint anyway. He did so at exactly the wrong time.

Thousands of feet beneath the surface, unable to stand the stress of its own misery any longer, the Hellish Abyss erupted. All the buildings in the village lurched together as the ground exploded beneath them, destroying the small structures and warping the large ones. From the Abyss, a wave of obsidian light penetrated the ground and rose up to the sky, silencing its optimistic stars forever. The Darkness, the collective force of a million disturbed souls set free, murdered anyone not securely buried within a building. They were lucky, though, for the survivors would get to experience the aftermath.

Ryokan himself, caught in mid-rush, was thrown into the air. His body traced an arc through the storage room in which he currently found himself. Landing head-first on the hard ground, Ryokan blacked out.

xxXXxx

The Ceremony Master woke up in a daze, greeted by a dark, foul-smelling room. He sat up, removing his white court hat to rub his sore head. It hurt like hell, but Ryokan remembered landing directly on it and he said a small prayer of thanks for surviving a fall that should have killed someone his age. He turned his head to survey the room, attempting to make sense of the situation.

He was still in his house's large storage space, a room that was literally one door away from the entrance. The room was dark though. The lanterns, still lit, seemed to give no illumination. The entire room, cleaned by his servants that very morning, was in decay. The floors and walls were sodden and moldy, patched with various unpleasant hues of black and brown. Cobwebs had sprung up, the inhabitants of those homes oddly absent.

Ryokan rose to his feet and took a larger look around. Sae had, thank gods, not used the opportunity to finish him off, and she was currently nowhere nearby. How long had he been out, though? He looked at a clock hanging on the wall to see that its hands were frozen. Another clock, set aside in a pile of nearby junk, had stopped too.

The old man had no desire to linger in his now-haunted home, and he approached the door when he heard a familiar and horrible sound. The awful moan discharging from the adjacent hallway hinted at Seijiro's presence. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Ryokan backed away from the door.

The Kusabi's wailing had less intensity than before. Maybe it was weakening? Even if it was, Ryokan still needed another way to reach...

_Crick!_

The damn floorboard had creaked! On the other side of the door, the Kusabi's wailing shifted, growing nearer. He tried to keep perfectly still, waiting to see if, maybe, the Kusabi would turn away. No luck; the specter's head appeared through the doorway, and the red sparks within its dead eyes found him immediately. The Kusabi's size seemed to have diminished, and one of its arms was no longer free, instead bound at its side by rope. It didn't matter; it would still be certain death if the thing caught him.

There was another way out of the house, though. Ryokan turned and ran to the Kusabi's right, up the flight of stairs that led to the second floor. The ghost snarled at his attempt to flee and missed an attempt to grab him by inches. Ryokan dashed up to the second floor of the storage room, knowing that he could lead the Kusabi on a chase that would draw it from the entrance. Practically tearing down each door in front of him, Ryokan stole though the store room, his own study, and the hallways leading to the courtyard staircase down to the first floor. The Kusabi had grown slower too, and it was well behind in a matter of moments.

Then he entered the great hall, the center of his house.

Ryokan had to force the door open, which was stuck shut by dried blood. The room's interior was terrible to behold. There were piles of bodies everywhere, no doubt collected together by Sae and her new friend. People from all across the village were there, mangled and lacerated. Blood leaked across the floors, streaked across the walls, and even dripped from the ceiling in a couple of places.

Ryokan heaved in disgust. He felt rage building within him, but there was nothing he could do for the dead. Struggling to disturb nothing but the floor, he stepped over the bodies to reach the door on the other side. Once there, Ryokan emerged into the hallway leading back to the Kurosawa house entrance. Before he could get to it, though, the door he was running toward opened.

Suppressing the urge to panic, Ryokan turned into one of the hallway's tributaries, rounding a corner to hide from whatever was making its way closer. His curiosity getting the better of him, Ryokan peered out from the corner to observe.

He saw a pale and familiar face walking by. Sae had reappeared, thankfully too busy to notice him. She was carrying something with the volume and voice of a child toward the great hall. From what he could tell, the child wasn't Chitose, but it was still a dismal revelation that no one would be spared.

The child, already having lost his parents, whimpered in pain. The places on his back where Sae's arms touched him were frozen solid, and his veins and skin were turning black from frostbite. Or, perhaps it was some malevolence that didn't normally exist among the living.

Sae noticed the child reaching up to her, hoping for some sympathy or reassurance. He remembered her from the days that they would play together. Those days were over, though, and all Sae did was laugh at his misery.

Ryokan looked away and shut his eyes tight, feeling a surge of sorrow. The boy's voice cracked in agony as Sae carried him into the great hall, where his cries became muffled and, within moments, silent. Shaking his head to dislodge the misery, Ryokan knew that his house's exit was finally clear. He ran for it, not caring how much noise he made, and freed himself from the building.

xxXXxx

Ryokan didn't stop to survey his surroundings when he got outside, even though the sky was alight with a dark shade of crimson. He ran across Whisper Bridge as fast as his time-worn body would carry him. It was silent outside, so he surmised that the Repentance was winding down. Perhaps that was the source of the Kusabi's weakness.

There were more bodies and more blood in the village's exterior, spread very thin, but everywhere. It didn't look like there had been many survivors. Some had been obliterated where they stood, nothing but a red explosion on the ground to hint at what had once been. There were chants in the distance, though, probably from surviving priests, and a few villagers were probably still alive inside their homes.

Ryokan made plans to lead the survivors out, but he would have to find his priests first. He set off to look for them when he was interrupted, yet again, by the familiar sound of screams and enraged cries. The Kusabi's gray miasma reappeared, but this time it came from everywhere and surrounded him. Ryokan coughed and gagged, trying to focus his watering eyes on where he would be attacked.

He turned too late to see that the Kusabi had reappeared directly in front of him. Rage had made the monster strong again and it towered over him with both arms and six ropes whipping around in wild spasms. Apparently it needed no victims to reach its full strength. All it needed was the anger of seeing the Ceremony Master.

One of the Kusabi's ropes whipped out to strike. Ryokan tried to back out of its range, but the rope was too fast. Ryokan let out a scream as it slashed across him, tearing open his kimono and skin from the left shoulder all the way down to his right hip. He fell to the ground, his own blood joining that of his fellow villagers.

Ryokan didn't try to crawl away as the Kusabi approached to finish him. He was dead, and he knew it. It had been a great effort, but the Repentance had lived up to its reputation. Seeing the creature before him raising its arm to deal the killing blow, Ryokan closed his eyes and heard the sound of something being smashed open.

Sure that he must've been dead, Ryokan opened his eyes...to see that the Kusabi had struck the ground in front of him. It let out an embroiled scream and lunged again, but when its arm descended, someone pulled Ryokan away, out of the Kusabi's range. He tried to turn to see who his savior was, but the pain still surging through his body made it impossible. All he could do was watch.

Enraged at the interference, the Kusabi bellowed at the person behind him and broke into a run, staggering on its own robes with every step. The person behind Ryokan began to drag him away, successfully outrunning the Kusabi. As Ryokan began to succumb to his injuries, he muttered out a word of thanks to whoever had saved him. His last sight before slipping into unconsciousness was the Kusabi's furious visage, growing father and farther from him.

xxXXxx

Alright, before anyone asks, Kanehira and Ryokan are **not** gay! Just friends, who are understandably emotional since they think they're both about to die.

Sorry again for neglecting to update for awhile, but this chapter at least contains an interesting revelation in it. You were probably expecting this story to end with this chapter since all the FF2 stories end with the Repentance, with maybe an epilogue. Don't forget, though, that I told you guys at the beginning (I think) that this story would be different than the others. Ryokan is still alive, Chitose might still be alive, Kanehira might still be alive, and someone was brave enough to get in the Kusabi's face to save Ryokan. This story is **not** over yet!

To be more specific, this story is divided into three parts:

Part I: Chapters 1-6, which cover All Gods' history before the main events of FF2.

Part II: Chapters 7-19, which cover the main storyline of the village that was explored in FF2.

Part III: Chapters 20-?, which focus on the Repentance's aftermath and Ryokan's attempt to break the curse placed over his village.

Oh, and don't worry; this story does have a definite ending. It won't carry on forever, only a few chapters left. Part III will begin as soon as I get a chance to update again, which will hopefully be soon. Either way, I hope you have enjoyed my take on the Repentance. Reviews will be appreciated. :)


	20. Chapter 20: The Lost Village

Thanks to AuthorNicola, Fan of Games, and Hermit Dragon for reviewing. The story is going to take some turns from this point on that you might find unusual, so keep an open mind. I really wanted to make sure that this story was as original as possible.

If there are any questions about something in this story that you were confused about, do not hesitate to ask. I'll answer your question either by PM, or in an author note at the beginning of the next chapter, whichever you prefer.

xxXXxx

Chapter 20: The Lost Village

When Ryokan awoke in a dimly lit room, he found that he couldn't feel any part of his body. It felt like he had been stupefied by one of the village medic's drugs. For at least an hour, he wasn't even sure that he was really alive, but the sense of unease permeating his thought was a dead giveaway.

Finally, his senses returned, and the room came into focus. It was barely lit, terribly cold, and very small. All around him books and furniture decorations were scattered, adding to the cramped feel. Lifting himself up to a sitting position, Ryokan finally recognized the room that he was in. On the room's desk, there was a small book with the name "Seijiro Makabe" printed in worn ink.

"This is my house's cell." Ryokan thought, remembering that Seijiro had been brought here prior to his death.

_Get up..._

Ryokan gave his head a small shake, when suddenly he doubled over in agony. He fell back down to the paper-strewn ground, clutching his head. He could feel a familiar throbbing sensation, and his eyes were boiling in their sockets. Forcing them open, Ryokan looked around the room, now appearing blurry from the tears that were welling up. In his reflection in a nearby mirror, he saw an enormous gash on his chest and remembered what the Kusabi had done to him. How had he survived that?

_Get up...!_

Ryokan blinked water out of his eyes and saw the injury. It was clearly marked by a black, oily line that traveled down his torn kimono, and looked infected. The blood had stopped flowing out of it, though, and Ryokan could manage the pain if he tried hard enough. The former Master grunted and stumbled to his feet.

_Good..._

Ryokan bit his lip. He was still trying to remember exactly what had happened after the ritual failed, and wanted quiet. The voice that called to him wasn't his conscience. It hadn't appeared to him in awhile, but the Malice was speaking once again.

_You should've heeded my warnings while you still could, old man. My patience has, as you can see, run out._

Ryokan looked around the cell. The walls were dark and dilapidated, and the floors were buckled with what appeared to be centuries of aging. The dull gloom of everything that he laid eyes on resembled the horrifying visions that he had received in the past. But this wasn't a vision, it was real.

The Ceremony Master's hands balled into fists, one gripping his sword, and he gritted his teeth with rage. If the Malice had only possessed some physical form, he would've carved it to pieces on the spot. Alas, demons made for frustrating tyrants.

_You're angry, of course. But don't blame me for this, old man. You brought this on yourself and your villagers when you failed to bring Yae back to me._

"You sacked my village and killed untold numbers of innocents. What could you possibly still want with me?" Ryokan cursed.

_Don't ask me. You were supposed to die along with everyone else, but I think I prefer it this way._

"Did anyone survive?" Ryokan jiggled the cell's doorhandle. The lock wasn't secured, and he stepped out and walked through the halls to his front door.

_Find out for yourself! You've got two eyes, so open the door and look!_

At the demon's snarling voice, Ryokan trembled a bit. The Malice seemed furious, even though this was its day of triumph. Why would the spirits be angry now, when before they had been so seemingly calm?

Ryokan opened the door, and his heart stopped.

_You may think this a victory on my part, Kurosawa, but this night I lost a sacrifice because __**you**__ failed to deliver it!_

Ryokan gazed at his village's remains. The night sky was completely dark, a murky cover of black and oily green hues. The moon peered down from the skies, barely visible behind sheets of gray clouds that extended endlessly across the horizon. A chilling wind rustled the trees and plants, which had become petrified and gray. The whole world seemed to have lost its light and color, leaving a withered shell behind.

_Search for survivors if you want, but no one, dead or alive, is leaving this place while I say so. If you ever want to see the light of day again, old man, you'll find a way to fix your mistake, and you'll do it soon! If you don't, your own village will become your grave._

With that, the Malice went silent.

xxXXxx

The former Ceremony Master wandered the arid streets of his decaying village. Falling victim to solitude, Ryokan actually wished for the Malice to say something else. Any company would help him now. The village looked even worse up close, and the only sounds that welcomed him into the darkness were the howl of the breeze and the crackling of the coal fires. The torches set up around the village weren't enough to lighten its oppressive aura, but the resultant shadows danced along the husks of the former houses, casting a bitter light onto how low the village had sunk. Most of them were chipping away and several had been torn off their foundations. All Gods looked like it had been abandoned for a long time.

Coming to rest on the stone stairs of the Kiryu-Tachibana plaza, Ryokan lowered his head in shame. Yae had been the one to run away and cause this problem, but Ryokan had to wonder how he could've let the village's safety go so wrong. Everything, all of Minakami, and maybe more than just that, had been lost under his watch, leaving him with no reason to exist. Even if he wasn't the village's sole survivor, he was definitely a failure as its last Ceremony Master.

However, Ryokan didn't stay grim forever. Had it happened a couple decades ago, the impact of the Repentance would have driven him to near suicide. But Ryokan was an elder with experience to match, and the Malice, through extended time festering in his soul, had hardened him against submission. The reality of his failure didn't leave him, but he drove past it, and after some time to think, Ryokan was embarking through the rest of the dusk. There were so many other questions, though. Was there really any way to salvage his situation? Was he the last one alive? Would _he_ even survive? Ryokan knew it wasn't likely, not with the Malice waiting, daring him to defy its wishes.

Besides, even if he could leave, Ryokan wouldn't be the one to shoulder such a selfish decision. Undoubtedly, the souls of those who had died were still trapped here, ironically barred from the afterlife in the same way that the Malice itself was. It was even possible that a few people had survived.

He had been the one to let the village's rituals fail, and he had an obligation to help the living _and_ the dead find peace. He would worry about himself later.

Ryokan scoured the village's crumbling infrastructure, but no life greeted him. Not a single insect stirred, let alone a person. In fact, even their bodies had not been spared. The remains had vanished, save for rare piles of black soot, eerily telling in their dead silence.

Ryokan came upon the Osaka house and reached for the handle to look inside when he heard noises. Voices; the old man's heart beat with excitement!

But then he saw one of them. From around a corner a low dirge of indiscernible howls sounded. Something stepped out into the street, cloaked in a fog that was somehow blacker than the sky, and walked in Ryokan's direction. It had the vague appearance of one of the poorer villagers, but the hideous apparition was definitely not living and barely even human. Dull, tattered clothes swung on its gray frame as the creature walked closer.

Ryokan froze in terror and pressed himself against the Osaka house. The creature didn't seem interested in him and he hoped it would stay that way. As it passed by, though, the creature stopped briefly and turned toward him. The former Master felt his fear compound as empty, black eye sockets focused on him. His chest felt like it was on fire and for a moment Ryokan feared that he would suffer an embarrassing death at the hands of heart failure. At least having his soul sucked out would be fitting. Neither happened, though, as the gaunt creature turned back to the street and limped along in another direction. In fact, from the way it tripped over itself, the creature appeared to be terrifiedofhim! Flickering in and out of sight, the shadows dissipated.

Ryokan breathed deep and steadied himself slowly. He could feel cold sweat drenching his ragged kimono. It was a sensation that he hadn't felt in over 20 years, the last time being the day that Akane and Azami's spirits had tried to strangle him. For reasons unknown, this spirit had shown respect and moved on, but there had to be a few lurking in the village who would not be so kind.

Looking up at Misono Hill with a sudden urge to be away from the village grounds, Ryokan decided in a hurry that having an escape route open would be a good idea. Clearing his throat anxiously, Ryokan headed up the grayed hill, thankful, for the first time, to be completely alone.

xxXXxx

The short walk up the hill was disquieting. Not a living thing stirred anywhere, and the dirt, dried up by the effects of the Darkness, made sickening crunching noises under his feet. The air smelled stale, much like Kiyomi's breath always had early in the morning. Then again, Ryokan was starting to miss that...

He finally reached the top of the hill, and saw that the world's transformation hadn't altered it much. Misono had never been lively, thanks to the significance it played in All Gods' rituals. The offering stone, the colossal ring of boulders that served as the Hellish Abyss' cover, looked as bleak as ever, obscuring the night sky as it towered into the air. The coal braziers lining its perimeter still crackled sharply and cast an eerie red glow over the grounds.

The surrounding forest, however, had changed just as vastly as everything else. Its trees had become old and dark. Off inside the forest's depths, branches splintered violently as the wind jarred them. Very hardly visible from such a distance was the deity statue that marked the boundaries of his village.

Ryokan tried not to let himself get distracted and walked hastily to the old torii gate that stood at the edge of the hill. Officially, it had marked the only path out of the village, although in reality the Kureha shrine housed another. Ryokan would use the former, and he set his sights on the forest beyond it looking for the path markers when a white figure at the arch's base caught his attention. It was a person, and one who he noticed was sobbing vigorously. In fact, he had heard it before.

"You...!" Ryokan's heart pounded with excitement as he saw the face of his elder daughter. It shouldn't have been possible, but Yae had realized her mistake and found her way back to the village. He could see her with his own eyes. She was kneeling just below the gate with her face in her hands, shimmering tears dripping onto the ground.

"You left us." Ryokan admonished her angrily. It had to be the first thing that he said to her, even if she had come back.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..." Yae responded dreamily. She sounded like a lost, tired child, and Ryokan felt his unease begin to return. Surely she could see him standing there?

"It's alright, I will forgive you. It may not be too..." Ryokan stopped and felt his hope turn to dread. He had knelt and reached out to place a hand on her shoulder, and felt it pass straight through her like a thin fog. Knitting his eyebrows in frustration, the old man tried to make sense of what he was seeing when the rustling of dead plants sounded. Seijiro's apprentice, Ryozo, appeared in the distance. He stopped right in front of Ryokan without even looking at him. Instead, he knelt down to touch Yae's shoulder, and _his_ hand came to rest on her like it should have. Scowling in frustration, Ryokan waved a hand inches in front of their faces. No response came, and Ryokan felt his muscles shake with rage as he came to a realization. What he was currently witnessing was not fate; Yae and Ryozo had planned this from the beginning. He had returned with the intent to escort Yae and Sae away from their home. But their plan had failed, and now they were both separated from him by the depraved power of the Repentance.

Yae wasn't regretting her treason at all. No doubt her sorrow was due to her failure to steal Sae away before it was too late. Standing to his full height and glaring down at the betrayers, Ryokan drew a deep, bitter breath of air. The smell of rot was surprisingly sweet now, not that he was paying attention to it.

"Yae, you were this village's greatest mistake. You doomed us all when you fled this place!"

Ryokan took full advantage of Yae's inability to hear or see him when he drew his sword and slashed at her throat. Of course, the blade passed straight through her without harm, but he couldn't resist swinging again and again. Without Yae, there was no way to undo the Malice's curse over the village.

As Ryokan swung his sword impotently, the simple truth dawned on him. Closing his eyes to better picture his own thoughts, Ryokan realized that there _was_ only one way to undo the village's curse. But one way meant that there was still a possibility of putting things right.

When the old man's eyes opened, he saw that Yae and Ryozo had disappeared. It amused him bitterly, knowing that Yae hadn't escaped without some final regrets. Ryokan's mouth curled into a small smirk just as an icy wind swept across the land, causing several more tree branches to fall before him. He didn't even notice it.

"Oh no, Yae, it is not that easy to escape. I told you before that I would not allow you to run away, and I still won't. I'll escape this place, I'll bring you back, and you will perform your ritual with the spirit of your dead sister. The curse will lift, and the dead will ascend into heaven. And none of them will even remember you."

_Good..._

Ryokan, not wanting to keep anyone waiting, turned and headed for the bridge nearby. It led to the graveyard, and from there a shortcut to the Kureha shrine was waiting to be used. But beneath his newfound animosity, fear was still festering. The Misono hill path had failed him; the "path" had disappeared in the wake of the disaster, and without it, trying to walk straight through the forest was suicide. Even if he didn't get lost, no one could survive the journey alone. He would starve, or die of exhaustion, and that was assuming that there weren't worse things lurking in the shadows as well.

The Kureha shrine was his last hope.

xxXXxx

Ryokan traversed the outer edges of All Gods and arrived at the door to the Kureha shrine. The building looked dependable, and the door was unlocked. The old man entered the sanctum and scanned the room for threats. After seeing no forms stir among the piles of splintered wood and debris, he crossed the small chamber in silence and stood in front of the door that led to the hidden passage. Ryokan smiled in triumph and pushed the door.

It didn't give an inch. Ryokan stepped away for a moment, then tried to force it open with all his strength. The passage barrier still didn't budge. Rubbing his head irritably, Ryokan ran his hands along the edges of the door, checking to see if the locks were in place. As he had suspected prior, none of them were. The door was still unlocked from earlier, when Sae and Yae had fled through it. But then, why would it not open?

Kurosawa stared at the door, scrutinizing it, hoping he would see something out of place. Just faintly, he perceived a light, blue glow in the center of the door. It didn't look like natural light. In fact, Ryokan didn't really know what it was, although he did hazard a guess that the Malice was somehow responsible.

"If you want me to return Yae to her rightful place, then break this door seal so that I can move on." Ryokan commanded. He listened for the Malice's reply, but none came. The former Master's eyes sharpened angrily, and he cleared his throat and spoke louder.

"I said break this seal now!" Ryokan picked his ears up and listened carefully for a reply. Alas, still no volume of voice came; the only sound he heard was the wind outside.

Ryokan didn't know why the Malice was ignoring him now, of all times. Maybe it was just toying with him, or maybe it was a motivation that a mortal mind couldn't comprehend. Whatever the case, Ryokan turned to leave the Kureha shrine.

"Fine, if you won't help me, then I'll find a way to open this door myself."

When the former Ceremony Master opened the creaky door and stepped out of the Kureha shrine, he felt a shiver run down his back. The village was freezing; Ryokan knew he couldn't spend too much time out here. As he descended the steps hurriedly, the old man thought about where he would go next. His own manor, probably, since that would be where all his ritual texts were. Perhaps he could find a way to break the seal there.

The Kiryu-Tachibana foyer came into sight as Ryokan hurried along the decaying streets. As he rounded a corner and approached the steps leading down, he suddenly tip-toed to a stop as a familiar figure came into view. Ryokan choked in fright as he realized that he had run into his former daughter again. Fortunately, she had her back to him and he was able to evade being seen by slipping around the corner of the Tachibana house.

_"Father...where are you...?"_ Sae called in a drawling sing-song voice. Ryokan felt dread envelop his mind as an icy chill washed over him. However, curiosity got the better of him and he slowly peered out from behind the corner of the house.

Her gaze met his. She was staring straight at him.

_"Give my sister back to me..."_ Sae hissed as she floated toward him. Ryokan felt his heart spasm, and reacting instinctively he rounded the corner and tore open the nearest door into the Tachibana house. He could hear Sae's maniacal laughter echoing outside, and it was getting closer. Deciding that he needed to put some space between him and her, Ryokan fled through the house's deserted corridors. They were all devoid of light and stunk of mold, but will to live and a sense of duty pressed him on. Eventually, Ryokan came to a set of stairs. He tried to hurry up them as they creaked and rattled unsteadily beneath his feet. At the top, the stairway's divider had been broken and Ryokan had to wonder with apprehension what had crashed through them.

He ran on through the second floor's corridors, eventually coming to a poorly mapped row of tatami rooms. Finally allowing his lungs a chance to rest, Ryokan sat down in the first room and observed his surroundings. This room, as well as the others, was bare with nothing but an occasional statue to liven the atmosphere. The walls were dark and covered with patches of mildew. At least the floor was soft...

Ryokan tried to rest, ignoring the low moans and unnatural whispers sounding vaguely from all around him. However, he suddenly found himself listening to one more and more keenly as it sounded louder and clearer than the others. Ryokan walked through a couple of doors to the source of the sound: a large, walk in closet not far from a flight of stairs, and listened in. He could hear fearful sobs coming from beyond the door, and they weren't cold and lifeless like all the others. In fact, the voice just sounded like...

"Is there someone alive in there?" Ryokan called cautiously. The sobbing slowly stopped, and within moments he heard the shuffling of a kimono against the ground, followed by scratching on the door.

"K..K..Kurosawa-sama? Is that you?" The person's voice, the voice of a child, was melodious and frail. More distinctly, though, Ryokan could hear the sound of a bell chiming. The old man's eyes widened as he realized who this was. He had since forgotten about his promise to Kanehira, but now he remembered with astounding clarity.

"Chitose! You're alive! What happened? How did you get in here?" Ryokan rejoiced. The sound of a reassuring voice, even if it belonged to someone that she had once feared, brightened Chitose's outlook, and her tears stopped flowing for the first time in hours. A few moments of silence passed before she realized that he had asked her a question.

But she couldn't find a way to answer it. Chitose just started sobbing again. Sorrow crossed Ryokan's face as he realized that he didn't need an answer from her. She had been alone, terrified of the screams that echoed, and terrified of Sae, and she had hidden from it, just like any child should have. Ryokan's expression melted into one of loss as he thought about the rest of Chitose's family. They had been less fortunate; at least Chitose's quick thinking had saved her life.

"Why is this happening? I heard so much screaming. Auntie...I saw her throw herself over a staircase! And Sae...there's something so wrong with her!" Chitose choked out her words amongst sobs.

"Well, you can thank Yae for that." Ryokan responded reflexively. Inside the dark closet, Chitose paused in curiosity.

"Y...Yae?" Chitose answered.

"None of this is important right now. Stand back and I'll open the door." Ryokan blurted out in a hurry, ashamed that he couldn't keep Yae out of his thoughts long enough to have a simple conversation with a child. It was too late, though; Chitose had absorbed his words, and the seeds of doubt had been planted.

"Yae." Chitose repeated, a little angry this time, as she heard tugging sounds on the door.

Ryokan stared baffled at the closet door. Like the Kureha shrine earlier, the door to Chitose's closet wouldn't move. Already having his suspicions about what was causing it, Ryokan peered at the center of the door and saw the familiar blue seal. Letting his frustration get the better of him, he pounded a fist into the wall in anger. Chitose whimpered in fright, and Ryokan instantly regretted it.

"Alright Chitose, try not to panic, I can figure this out." Ryokan removed his court hat temporarily to let the cold sweat in his hair evaporate. He tried to think when the sound of creaking floorboards interrupted him. Already horrified at the prospect of what was causing the noise, Ryokan moved silently to the nearby staircase and felt his heart pound as he saw Sae standing at the bottom. She was at the staircase, lost in thought for a moment. Deep inside his soul, the Malice urged Ryokan to run for his life, but he knew that he couldn't flee this time. Sae would kill Chitose if he didn't come up with a way to trick her into leaving the house. Aside of shouting at her to get her attention and then letting her chase him, which was suicidal and out of the question, Ryokan's search for a solution came up empty. Would he have to let Chitose die?

Fortunately, Ryokan wasn't really alone. At the bottom of the stairwell, a look of curiosity crossed Sae's features as a pair of crimson butterflies flew in through a window above her. The butterflies flitted down to her level, remaining out of her reach, beckoning her to follow them. Sae gave chase as they fluttered toward a door that led out of the room. Within moments, Sae had followed them out of sight.

"Thank gods." Ryokan mumbled in relief. He walked back to Chitose's closet. Seeing the butterflies render assistance had made him realize that he needed help. Unfortunately, the person who could help him most right now, was also his worst enemy. Still, this was an emergency, and he would do what he had to in order to save Chitose _and_ escape the village himself.

"Chitose, I have to leave you alone for now, but I promise I will come back. I hate to admit it...," Ryokan muttered, embarrassed, "...but there is one person in this village who might be able to help us."

xxXXxx

Ryokan mentally steeled himself as he approached the storehouse of All Gods village. Sitting stalwart on the edge of the bleak forest, the small storehouse had remained sturdy and intact in the aftermath of the Repentance. Even its outer walls where still a bright white, and the old man took some heart in seeing a small part of his village that wasn't rotting away before his eyes. A single shining lantern hung over the storehouse's door, illuminating its handle.

The door, however, had been locked to keep Itsuki from escaping. This had been the place where he committed suicide. Ryokan shook the handle for a moment, but sure enough it would not budge. He was prepared for this and walked around the left side of the storehouse. A white wall blocked him there, but a small gate had been built into it. Ryokan opened the gate and passed through.

The small plot of land behind the storehouse was relievingly peaceful. No moans or ghastly cries echoed nearby, and there were even plants here that were still green. Crimson butterflies, a much welcomed sight, danced and played with each other, all gathering around a pair of small, ornate statues. Even the biting cold of the village didn't penetrate here, and for the first time since waking up, Ryokan wasn't shivering.

It was the closest thing in the village to a safe haven and the former Ceremony Master felt a strong urge to lie down here and sleep, to regain his strength. But he could do that later, _with_ Chitose, after he had pulled her out of the closet. Then they would leave, he would take her to some place where she would be safe and looked after, and then he could deal with Yae.

"What are you doing here?"

Ryokan turned around to see Itsuki glaring at him from the small, barred window at the back of the cell. His condemnatory gaze was about as welcoming as Ryokan had expected it to be. Itsuki wasn't happy to see him, but there was no time to fight. He and Chitose were living on borrowed time, and he knew it. Soon the spirits of this place would descend upon them both, and they would be finished. Chitose couldn't even run away from them, confined to her closet. He had to wrap up his time in the rotting village soon.

"I need your help." Ryokan got right to the point. The silver haired boy's features softened a little at seeing Ryokan humble.

"Why would you ask me for my help now? You didn't listen to me or Yae when you had the chance, and now look at what it has caused." Itsuki stared out at the inky sky beyond his storehouse. Ryokan sighed deeply.

"Itsuki, I would be lying if I said I was not partly to blame for this. Yae was my daughter, and I let her slip away from me. If I had been a better father, I could've prevented this disaster before it occurred."

"Somehow, I don't think you know what the word 'father' really means. If you don't mind my asking, why are you still here? Don't you want to escape?" Itsuki replied with a mix of accusation and sorrow.

"More than anything, Itsuki. But not while my people still need me. I need to find a way to undo this curse." Ryokan's eyes widened a little as he remembered why he had come to Itsuki in the first place. "Oh, and while we're on the subject, it might interest you to know that Chitose is still alive."

Itsuki's mouth went agape.

"Of...of course! That makes sense; her first instinct would've been to hide! Where is she now? Is she with you?" Itsuki asked hopefully. Ryokan's melancholy expression, however, told him the answer.

"I'm afraid not, Itsuki. Something is holding her closet shut, and I can't get it open. I'm afraid she doesn't have much time. I want to get her to safety, Itsuki, and I would be thankful if you would help me."

Itsuki frowned, but he nodded in reply almost immediately. He had forgotten about Chitose at the moment when he took his own life, but he loved her more than he despised Ryokan.

"Do you know what's keeping the door shut?" Itsuki asked. Ryokan tried to picture the blue shade of light in his mind.

"I'm not exactly sure. It's some kind of spirit energy, a product of the denizens of this cursed place."

Itsuki puzzled over his words for a moment.

"What about your archives? Surely you could find some ritual to remove the seal?" The white haired boy suggested. Ryokan shook his head in dismay.

"I probably could, but it would take far too long. Chitose won't survive in that closet. Itsuki, before the Repentance, I'm sure that you conversed with the folklorist's apprentice, Ryozo, on many occasions. You would have had to, in order to plan your escape. Did he ever mention anything about his master's work? Anything at all that can help me?"

Ryokan stared at the boy hopefully. Itsuki thought as hard as he could, trying to remember every conversation with his friend. Finally, he smiled and looked up.

"When he and Seijiro came to this village, Seijiro talked about a unique camera that he had brought with him. I don't understand how it works, but he thought that the camera had the power to 'see impossible things'. In the hands of someone with a sixth sense, like yourself, maybe it could do more than just see them!"

Ryokan thought it over. He remembered the camera from the day that it had taken the strange picture of Sae at the village's festival. The "Camera Obscura", it had been called. Relying on that camera to save Chitose was a long shot, or maybe just a mis-fire, but the old man had witnessed its capacity to sense evil before. In a way, it had predicted how dark-hearted Sae would become in death. It was worth a try.

"Thank you, Itsuki." Ryokan said, giving a small bow. Itsuki smiled and nodded back.

"Look in the bushes behind you, Ryokan. Behind the deity statue, there is something that will come in handy."

Ryokan raised an eyebrow in curiosity and turned around to face the small garden. He walked over to the nearest deity statue and looked behind it. An odd looking stone caught his eye. It's edges and corners were jagged, and the stone was polished so finely that the old man could see his reflection in it.

"It's called a stone mirror." Itsuki said. "The butterflies create them by finding ordinary stones and rubbing their bodies against them. They don't do it very often, but the stones are supposed to be good luck. You should keep it with you."

Ryokan frowned doubtfully. "How do you know any of that?"

Itsuki smiled innocently and shrugged. "The butterflies told me. They created that one just a matter of seconds before you got here."

From the serious look on his face, Itsuki wasn't lying. Maybe he was just losing his mind, but it couldn't hurt to carry the thing around. Ryokan bowed again and tucked the stone mirror into his robes.

"I should be going, Itsuki. Thanks again for your..."

"Before you leave, can I ask you one more question?" Itsuki interrupted softly. The old man turned to face him again.

"I want to know, Ryokan. What happened to you while you were in the Kuze shrine?"

A surge of surprise coursed through the former Master's veins.

"What did you say?" He asked back, checking to be sure that he had heard Itsuki correctly. The boy's face was somber.

"About a year ago, you left our village behind. You told the villagers that you were traveling north to visit another shrine, and that you would not be back for some time, but you never told anyone why you were going, except maybe for my father."

Ryokan nodded to him. Itsuki took a deep breath and continued.

"On the day that you finally came back, Yae and I hoped that your travels would have taught you what was really important in life. We both wanted to think that you had changed for the better. Instead, that day, more than any other, was the day that we knew that you would never be anything other than a faceless Ceremony Master. Somehow, that journey changed you for the worse. So what happened during your travels? What happened to make you hopeless?"

Ryokan was too mystified by Itsuki's question to be offended by it. No one had ever dared to ask him before. Even he himself had tried to forget about those dark days. But Itsuki had helped him, and he deserved the truth. Taking a deep breath of anticipation, Ryokan began to recount the story.

xxXXxx

I hope that you all found this chapter enjoyable and interesting. Just to clarify a couple of things:

1. Yes, Ryokan will be using the Camera Obscura to fight spirits in the following chapters of this story, much like Mio did in the actual game. However, I promise that I will keep it interesting.

2. A few chapters ago, I told you all in an author note that I was going to write a separate one-shot regarding Ryokan's journey to the Kuze shrine. However, I have recently decided not to write any sequels _or_ spin-offs for this story, so the one-shot has been canceled.

Instead, Ryokan **will** be recounting his time in the Kuze shrine in the next chapter. It will be a first person narration from his point of view, and will answer all the questions and mysteries regarding his journey that would have been answered in the one-shot.

Please note that the next chapter is a **bonus chapter**. If you don't want to read it, you can skip it without missing out on any plot details. However, the chapter will give you a better understanding of Ryokan's character, so I do recommend reading it. It will be up in a couple of weeks.

Reviews are always appreciated.


	21. Chapter 21: The Kuze Shrine

Welcome back, everyone. Before you dive in, I have a couple of notes on this chapter in particular, because it is different from the others. First of all, keep in mind that we're taking a break from the main story to recount Ryokan's journey into the Kuze shrine. Unlike the other chapters, which were told in the third person, **most** of this one is a **first person** point of view, told from Ryokan's perspective. However, a little bit of it is still third person, as Itsuki will occasionally stop Ryokan to ask questions. If any of you get confused about this chapter, feel free to ask questions in the review section, or send me a PM.

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Chapter 21: The Kuze Shrine

"I'll never forget the day that I arrived on the grounds of the Kuze Shrine. The Manor surrounding it was a massive structure; beautiful, ornate, and buried so deeply in the Mutsu mountains, that many would consider it more a dream than reality. The pall of seclusion surrounding their culture and beliefs was overbearing, much greater than our own. It showed when the other inhabitants saw me. I was clearly not welcome there.

Men were never allowed in the Manor except during the winter season, to mourn their loved ones. Angering the matrons and other Manor inhabitants even slightly could result in death. I arrived in time to catch the last snowfall of winter, but the other mourners had long since left. However, Yashuu Kuze, the presiding ruler at the time, recognized me as a fellow Ceremony Master and allowed me in under supervision. They had a library where I could do all the research I needed to in order to learn more about the underworld. The arrangement was simple: I would finish and leave as soon as possible, and they, in return, would not kill me."

"Why would they be so hostile?" Itsuki interrupted. "Didn't you say that the women knew you were another Ceremony Master?"

Ryokan just frowned at him.

"Yes, they did, and that was the problem. The various ritual shrines of Japan all serve a similar purpose, but really, in the end we are separate religious cults who never share views on how to practice worship and sacrifice. The Kuze Manor and All Gods, in particular, have a grim history with each other, much of it relating to gender issues. In All Gods, men were dominant. Among the Kuzes, men were rarely allowed to live at all.

Yashuu assigned a young girl named Hisame to watch me. She was one of their handmaidens, a type of servant who would tend to the main priestess of the shrine, and she had a reputation as being the most cruel of them all. She rarely let me out of her sight. It was particularly important that I not visit the third floor of the manor, probably because the priestess resided there. Needless to say, I finished my research in a hurry and prepared to leave."

Itsuki frowned in confusion as he tried to piece together everything that Ryokan was telling him. If Ryokan's goals had been accomplished without a hitch, he wouldn't have taken so long getting back.

"So what went wrong?" Itsuki asked. Ryokan shut his eyes nervously.

"On the final night before I was to leave the Kuze shrine, something in Yashuu snapped. I didn't know why at the time, but Yashuu's servants stormed my room and took me prisoner. They brought me to a room called "the blind room". When I arrived, two women with gouged out eyes and giant needles protruding from their arms were waiting for me. They were called Engravers, and Yashuu had ordered them to drain me of all my blood, to be used in their future rituals. They were told not to stop until I had been completely emptied. When I asked Yashuu why she was executing me, she would not answer. She and the other servants departed without a word, leaving me and my tormentors alone.

Without hesitation, the Engravers began their torture. The disfiguring scars that you and Sae saw when I returned to All Gods were the result of the damage that they did."

Ryokan pulled his kimono open to reveal at least a dozen enormous gashes running along his body. Seeing them caused a look of astonishment to cross Itsuki's face. It was sobering knowledge to realize that every shrine had its own strange version of the village's cutting ritual. It sounded like an awful way to die.

"How did you escape?" Itsuki asked in a soft, almost inaudible tone. Ryokan pulled his kimono back up and continued.

"I shouldn't have survived that day. But before they had finished with me, the Engravers just left the room, without a trace. It was as if they had been startled by something unseen. They remind me of our mourners, actually.

While the Engravers were gone, someone else entered the blind room. She was a young, sweet looking woman with a soft face and long black hair. A white blouse and blue dress concealed a slender body that would soon be covered in tattoos. She freed me, cleaned my wounds as best she could, and whispered to me in a voice that was so soft and caring, that it seemed unreal:

'My name is Reika Kuze. You're going to be alright.' "

Ryokan paused to let Itsuki take in all that he was hearing. The white haired boy looked positively enthralled by the story, which was amusing, because the old man was just getting started.

"I didn't know it at the time, but Reika was the tattooed priestess; the single most important woman in the entire shrine. It was anyone's guess why she wanted to help me so badly, but I didn't have time to think it over. Not five minutes after Reika had arrived in the blind room, I heard Yashuu's bellowing, panicking voice resound through the entire manor. She as well as her handmaidens had finally noticed that their priestess was missing. Within moments, every woman in the Kuze shrine was looking for us.

Reika and I fled as fast as we could, but my injuries were slowing me down. Yashuu and her servants cornered us, and I was forced to put the blade of my sword at Reika's throat in order to keep them at bay."

"Were you bluffing?" Itsuki asked. Deep down, even he didn't believe that Ryokan would have it in him to hurt someone like Reika, who had risked everything to save him. Much to his relief, Ryokan nodded.

"I would never have hurt Reika. She was too important to the Kuze family's ritual. But Yashuu was too concerned for Reika's safety to call my bluff. Instead, she ordered the Engravers and Handmaidens to let us pass. Before we moved on, however, I took the opportunity to demand that Yashuu tell me why she tried to have me killed."

"And...?" Itsuki asked impatiently. A dark chuckle escaped Ryokan's lips.

"Funny thing about the Kuze family, Itsuki. They don't require that their members be born into the family, as we do. In fact, they frequently adopt women from other villages and use them in their rituals and practices. Reika, for example, had been adopted after a plague called "the Third Pandemic" spread to her village, leaving her as the only one who survived its disease. Her birth name was Reika Yukishiro.

What I didn't yet know was that Yashuu had been adopted as well. Her birth name was Yashuu Kurosawa.

It was one of the best kept secrets in our village, and it sounds impossible, but when I returned home, I searched my library for evidence proving or disproving Yashuu's story. I found a hidden document verifying Yashuu's birth in **my** family. She is the first born child of my father, Sengoku, and my older sister by **twelve** years."

Itsuki's eyes were hollow. He was stunned silent for a moment, but Itsuki also found it a little funny to think of what "Ryokan + 12" must have looked like. He didn't realize that people could possibly live for that long.

"Wipe that smile away, Itsuki. According to what she told me, Yashuu had been very outspoken about her ideals even when she was young. She told my father, when she ruled All Gods village, that she wanted to change the order in the village to make women more important. But my father was very traditional, and he didn't approve. Faced with the threat of his daughter becoming the new Ceremony Master, Sengoku banished her on her twelfth birthday when my brother and I were born. He never mentioned her to either of us, and removed almost all evidence of her existence. She would have died, but someone in our village took pity on her, smuggled her out of this village, and handed her over to the Kuze shrine. She has wanted revenge on my family, and our entire village, ever since.

But her plan to kill me failed, and Reika and I eventually made it to the Engraving Shrine. It was the place where the priestess would have her skin tattooed. But more importantly, it contained the opening of an underground tunnel called "the last passage" that, in turn, led to the Abyss of the Horizon, the location where the dead cross into the afterlife. Reika knew that no one would be guarding it, since they didn't think that I knew about it. Of course, they couldn't predict that Reika would drag me down there.

Finally, we made it into the depths of the Abyss. It wasn't dark or dismal, like our own Hellish Abyss is. It was a beautiful place, and seeing it with my own eyes was a gift that I didn't deserve. Reika led me to a rowboat and then pointed toward a tunnel. She told me that travelling through that tunnel would lead out of the mountain and place me well outside the Kuze shrine, and from there I would be able to make it back home without being followed.

Before I was allowed to leave, however, Reika told me her true reason for saving me.

First, she told me about a man named Kaname Ototsuki. Apparently he was the boy, about her age, that she had fallen in love with before becoming the tattooed priestess. However, in the Kuze shrine, priestesses were forbidden from remaining attached to anyone of this world, especially a lover. It was why men were not permitted in the Kuze shrine under most circumstances."

Itsuki cast an anguished glance down at his cell's floor. The talk of priestesses in love reminded him too greatly of Sae, and how he had been forced to push her away, if not for the same reasons.

"But Reika wouldn't give up. She was desperate to say one final goodbye to Kaname, and she knew that, with her ritual mere months away, I was her last chance of getting a message to the man that she loved. She handed me a letter addressed to him, grasped my shoulders, looked me in the eyes, and made me promise on my soul that I would pass the message on exactly as she had wrote it. Knowing that she had saved my life, I knew I had to agree."

A spark of life flashed through Itsuki's eyes. Something had just occurred to him.

"That note that you handed to Sae when you returned!" He said. Ryokan nodded.

"The words 'don't forget me' were the last ones on her letter. After escaping the shrine and resting while my wounds closed, I searched for Kaname. It took forever, and left me with many lonely nights to think, but I finally found the village that Kaname was currently living in. I knocked on his door and told him that I had come bearing news about Reika."

Itsuki smiled. It was impressive that the old man had ventured so far just to fulfill Reika's wish. He could have easily thrown the letter away and come back to the village.

"So then you gave him the message?" The white-haired boy asked. Ryokan sighed bitterly.

"I did give him 'a' message. I told him that Reika Kuze was dead."

At that moment, All Gods village grew a little darker as Itsuki felt his hopes scattered like butterflies blown away by a rough wind. Ryokan's face was filled with regret.

"At first, I had full intention of delivering Reika's letter to him. But when Kaname answered the door and heard her name, I knew the look on his face. He was like you, Itsuki. I knew that, if Kaname had believed that Reika was still alive, he wouldn't have rested until he had her back in his arms. He would have gone to the Kuze shrine and ruined their entire ritual. I may hate the Kuzes, but I don't hate them enough to let them all die.

The Kuzes call the disaster that results from the failure of their rituals 'the Unleashing', just as we call ours 'the Repentance'. I couldn't let the Unleashing happen, and for that reason, I had to break Reika's heart."

Ryokan, his mouth and heart both dry from recounting the story, looked up at the storehouse window again, but Itsuki wasn't there anymore. Ryokan didn't blame him. After a few moments outside in the cold, Ryokan turned to the gate and walked toward it slowly.

"I know you can still hear me in there, Itsuki. I know you think I'm a terrible person, but I do have a conscience. I know so, because Reika haunts it every night that I try to sleep. She appears to me in a dream, inside a rundown, withered version of the Kuze shrine where the Unleashing has occurred and killed everyone. Gone is her soft kindness, replaced by a vengeful demeanor not unlike Sae's. Every night, she seizes me by the throat with icy fingers and lifts me off the ground, demanding to know why I broke my promise. But neither you nor her will ever understand what being a leader is really like."

The former Ceremony Master undid the lock on the gate and opened it. Right before he passed under it, he offered his final words to the white haired boy who had come so close to understanding him.

"You have your answer, Itsuki. You wanted to know why I returned to this village with no hope. The answer is that I realized on my journey that 'hope' is just another word for 'impossible'. There is no real hope, just decisions to be made. Remember that, Itsuki. Hope didn't save the Kuze shrine from its doom, I did."

xxXXxx

So there you have the story of Ryokan's journey into the Kuze shrine. Did I manage to surprise anyone with the "Ryokan has a sister" twist?

I have a note regarding the end of this chapter, where Ryokan describes his dreams. Keep in mind that, in the timeline for the Fatal Frame games, the Unleashing does occur sometime **before** the Repentance. I implied at the end of the story that Ryokan failed to save the Kuze shrine from destruction and, by hurting Reika in the way that he did, he actually became the first non-Kuze person to suffer from the Tattooed Curse. That's what his dreams are.

However, Ryokan doesn't know any of this, and he believes that her appearances in his dreams are just because of the guilt that he feels. Since he is already being hunted by Sae and the Kusabi, it is unlikely (though not impossible) that Ryokan will live long enough for Reika's spirit to ever become an issue, so please note that she probably won't be mentioned in this story again. When the next chapter goes up, hopefully within a couple of weeks, the story's main plot will resume in full, and will not be interrupted again.

Also, I added a little surprise to this chapter by citing "the Third Pandemic" as the reason that Reika's village was destroyed. In actual history, it was an outbreak of Bubonic Plague that occurred in Asia about 160 years ago. It didn't affect Japan very seriously, but the plague killed millions in China and other countries, and most of it happened within about 10 years of the events of Fatal Frame 2 and 3. The coincidence was too good to pass up.

I hope you all enjoyed this crossover between the two games. Thanks for reading, and reviews will be appreciated.


	22. Chapter 22: The Camera Obscura

Thanks again to Fan of Games and Nicola for reviewing. Fan of Games, your words were very uplifting, and I appreciate them dearly. Not to sound self-satisfied, but I also believe that this story is at least above average for this site. Some editing still needs to be done, but I've worked hard on it. Once the story is finished, I'm planning to submit it to special "archives" on this site that catalogue good stories, in the hope that they'll accept it. They're the closest we have to a "hall of fame".

We'll return to the main story now. Getting closer to the end, but I won't say how many chapters away we are, since I want it to be a surprise.

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Chapter 22: The Camera Obscura

Ryokan felt his neck crack sharply when he turned his head, regarding the storehouse's dimly lit facade once more before leaving.

"If I'm lucky, Itsuki will find a way to forgive me one day." Ryokan mused optimistically, even though he shouldn't have cared. He didn't linger any longer, and disappeared into the shadows of his rotten village.

Save for a racing heart and sharpened eyes, the old man showed no signs of fear as he traversed his village, for he knew they could smell it. The streets were far livelier than they had been before, if the dead could be considered "lively", that is. Spirits wandered aimlessly and lurked in the shadows. Spirits of villagers, of priests, but fortunately no Sae…yet. Initially, he was careful, but before too long Ryokan found himself letting his guard down. The spirits, miraculously, paid him no attention, and some even stopped to greet him formally or bow down in reverence, just as they had done in life. Eventually, Ryokan surmised that, likely, the spirits still remembered what he had been before the Repentance: a Ceremony Master. The other spirits weren't smart like Itsuki, and didn't yet understand that they were dead.

"Yes, that's it." Ryokan said with satisfaction. "They still remember me as their Master."

Ryokan decided to continue searching for the camera, even if it turned out not to be necessary. Taking every advantage of being left alone by the spirits, Ryokan tried surveying them up close. The air around them was cold as ice and made Ryokan miserable. Some were difficult to see, while others were very clear. Some were odorless, while others smelled of blood. It gave a ray of hope to the old man to see that none of the priests looked like Kanehira.

"_Mayu…!"_

"Hmm?" Ryokan started and turned to the source of what he determined to be a distant yell. Running toward and passing straight through him without so much as stopping was a spirit whose appearance did not match the others. He recognized her soft appearance and strange clothes. It was the outsider.

"The girl from before…" Ryokan turned around to watch her run off in another direction, but he didn't bother to give chase. She couldn't hear or help him, but at his core the old man had to wonder why Yae's lookalike kept appearing.

Too wrapped up in thought to take in his surroundings appropriately, Ryokan realized with surprise that he was already walking across Whisper Bridge. Another ghost, one of a woman wearing a white dress, appeared just above the surface of the water some distance away, but it did not bother him and so he did not bother it.

"Lord Kami-sama, please give me the strength to face my fears and keep the shadows at bay, or give me forgiveness should I fail."

Uttering his short prayer in near silence, Ryokan opened the Kurosawa house doors and stepped inside.

xxXXxx

Ryokan lifted the Camera Obscura up to eye level and studied it extensively. Once inside the document storage cell, he had found it easily by detecting its metallic coating that reflected the light of a nearby lantern. The camera was fairly large and heavy, with an attractive bronze luster. The rim surrounding the cameras' lens, Ryokan noted, was inscribed with ritual markings, many of which he recognized. It was a good sign, since it showed that whoever the inventor was, he had apparently known what he was doing.

It was time to test it. Ryokan looked into the camera's viewfinder and studied it. Already he could feel his heart racing and his reflexes quickening, and in the distance the old man could hear whispering and see flickering lights that hadn't been there before. The camera, it seemed, was augmenting his own already-powerful sixth sense, which Ryokan knew could be dangerous since those with senses too acute often went insane and died by their own hands. It didn't matter, though, as he knew he would likely be dead soon anyway.

The same markings on the rim of the camera flickered in its viewfinder. Aiming the camera at the nearest unnatural light, Ryokan clicked the shutter button. Expecting a flash of light, he received nothing but a dry clicking noise from the camera. Lowering it again, the former Master worried.

"Maybe a piece is missing…" Ryokan hoped. He peered down at the knocked-over pile of Seijiro's possessions when he discovered a stack of thin, square cartridges near his feet. Ryokan realized it was film and that the camera needed it in order to function properly. He picked them up and studied them at length. Almost all of the cartridges were green and fairly new, and the old man loaded these into the camera. There weren't many of them, which worried him, but he would be careful.

One magazine did not match the others. The final piece of film that Ryokan had yet to insert into the camera was coated in gold leaf and very ornate. Curious, Ryokan inserted the film and looked into the viewfinder. Reactively, all the markings of the camera lit up and Ryokan felt all his fears disappear for a moment. He could tell this piece of film was special, the strongest that Seijiro had brought with him. Without hesitation, the old man removed the film and pocketed it. This shot would be saved for the most dire circumstance.

The old man began his walk out of Kurosawa house when he tripped over a toppled ceiling support and fell in front of the doors that led to the front garden. He tried to get up again, but he was too weak and he sat there for a moment, staring at the door. The darkness was beginning to take its toll on him. Ryokan was tired, hungry, and fearful, and he knew he couldn't remedy any of these. With Chitose's life ticking away, there was no time for rest, and Ryokan didn't want to see either of their lives taken while he slept. All the food in his village had instantly spoiled when the Repentance occurred, although the water from various rivers seemed to be safe. There was no escaping the fear of this place.

"I wish Kanehira was here." Ryokan said somberly, missing his friend. "To help me up and to talk to me."

Still trying in vain to force himself up, Ryokan distracted himself by thinking of how he would use the camera. He would avoid Sae and the Kusabi if possible, and if lucky he wouldn't need it for self-defense at all. Kurosawa sorely wished that he could exterminate the Malice with it. It was the source of his village's curse and Ryokan knew a curse could be ended if its source was destroyed or appeased. But the Malice had no physical form, though it could possess others, and so it could not be destroyed with the camera. The only way to force it to release his village was to give it what it wanted.

"Yae." Ryokan growled as he finally stood up. He walked toward the double doors and forced them open. When he stepped outside, Sae was waiting for him.

"_Hello, father."_ Sae hissed. She was facing away from him again, but she had heard the door open and turned to face him. _"Come here."_

Ryokan felt a terrible chill consume him as Sae approached. He instantly turned back to the main door and tried to kick it open, but it was sealed by the same strange force that held Chitose in her closet. Sae cackled and reached for him, but Ryokan ducked and turned to his right. He grabbed at the handle of his cellar door. It hadn't been sealed and Ryokan entered his house and bolted down the stairs leading into the depths of the basement.

Arriving at the large well in the middle of his empty cellar, Ryokan readied the camera and waited to see if she would follow him. Ryokan had elected not to use the camera against her or force the other door open. Both of those options would've been dangerous and wasted film, and he couldn't have that.

Sae did not follow him. Ryokan sighed in relief and prepared to depart when another chill consumed him. His heart hammered painfully, serving as his body's warning of what was about to come. Suddenly, the old man cried out in pain as a pair of slender arms wrapped around his torso from behind. The embrace seemed almost loving, but the arms were pale and transparent and the old man felt himself weakening as they pulled his soul away from him.

Ryokan struggled free and turned to face his unearthly attacker. It was a young woman, one who looked strangely familiar. Appearing much as she had in life, the woman looked beautiful for her age and was very tall. She wore a light purple kimono and had long, black hair that reached some distance from her head. Her face wasn't clear though; its features shifted hazily, preventing Ryokan from getting a good look at her. Muttering a sound of bitter disappointment, the spirit turned and pointed down at a pile of ash. It was the place where Ryokan had ordered his wife to be chained as punishment for her betrayal. Ryokan knew who this was.

"Kiyomi…" Ryokan gasped in horror. Satisfied, the woman's face settled. Her once soft features had been sharpened by hatred, and her hair and clothes were disheveled beyond belief. Both of her hands were scarred and injured, the result of her pulling on the chains that held her.

"_You betrayed me!"_ The woman rasped in accusation. The old man didn't intend to receive her vengeance and turned to run out of the cellar. He fled up the stairs and tried to open the door, but found it held shut. Desperate, he fired his first shot from the camera. A blinding flash lit the room as the camera whined mechanically, but when the light settled and Ryokan tried the door again, it was still stuck. A surge of adrenaline hit him as he realized that there was no escape.

Ryokan turned back to the staircase and saw Kiyomi gliding toward him, her eyes burning with rage. Ryokan raised the camera, but he wasn't fast enough and Kiyomi pressed him against the wall, her hands wrapped around his throat.

"_I loved you."_ Kiyomi whispered in his ear as she choked the life out of him. Then Kiyomi's sour expression turned to one of cruel mischief, and her hands slid up to hold his head tightly. She brought their faces closer together, and opened her mouth to reveal an elongated tongue covered in black sores and leaking pus. Her breath was vomit-inducing, and as her face neared his Ryokan realized with a dreadful groan that she was planning to kiss him. He remembered telling his children stories of the deadly consequences of a spirit's kiss, and they were all true.

To stop the spirit's deadly attack, Ryokan lifted the camera and shoved it between their faces. He noticed briefly that a glass tube in the viewfinder was glowing a bright shade of orange, but Ryokan forced himself to focus on the task at hand, and another shot from the camera formed a luminescent barrier between the two of them. Kiyomi covered her face with her hands, grumbling in discomfort, and faded into a cloud of black smoke. Seeing his opportunity to turn the tide, Ryokan fled the staircase and re-entered the cellar. With room to move around, Kiyomi wouldn't be able to take him by surprise again.

"I know you're still here, Kiyomi." Ryokan called out, emboldened by the realization that the camera could protect him. "It hurts to see you in pain, but you asked for this to happen when you betrayed me!"

No answer; Kiyomi obviously wasn't interested in talking. Ryokan couldn't blame her for that. Holding his breath to maintain the most absolute silence possible, Ryokan listened for any sign of Kiyomi emerging from the shadows.

"Behind me!" Ryokan shouted aloud as he spun about and focused on her. As if enraged by his common sense, Kiyomi burst forth, hands outstretched. The old man wasn't about to let her near him and lifted the camera up again. The bulb flashed and Kiyomi doubled over for a brief moment, but the shot wasn't enough to drive her away this time. Snarling, Kiyomi turned sharply and tried to backhand him, but Ryokan ducked and yet another shot sent her sailing into the air. After a few moments of floating, Kiyomi uncovered her face and grinned malevolently at her former husband. She wasn't returning to the ground, instead she glided through the air like a bird of prey, circling around Ryokan numerous times. When he realized that Kiyomi was trying to dizzy him, Ryokan stopped following her and instead relied on his other senses to tell him of her position. He could hear the sound of her heavy breathing and fluttering kimono, and when these sounds intensified Ryokan turned toward her just in time to see her bear down on him with arms outstretched. Falling to the ground intentionally in order to buy time to aim the camera, Ryokan fired another flash that blinded both of them. When the light settled, Kiyomi was gone. The old man didn't drop his guard, and his eyes were still wide.

"That was _too_ easy." Ryokan muttered fearfully. When he tried to get up, Kiyomi's scarred hands shot through the ground and held him down. Her head and the rest of her body floated up through the floor slowly, and her eyes met his. She was wearing a sense of triumph on her face.

The old man tried to raise the camera, but Kiyomi was expecting it this time and knocked it out of his hands. The camera hit the floor far away from them, coming to rest at Ryokan's feet. His former wife grinned bitterly.

"_Open wide."_ Kiyomi hissed. Her mouth opened, and Ryokan could feel painful blisters forming on his skin where her drool dripped onto him. He tried to struggle, but Kiyomi was too strong and kept her hold on his neck and head. As she lowered herself toward him, Ryokan heard a mechanical hum emitting from the camera at his feet. He had finally found a bit of luck: the camera's lens was still facing Kiyomi, and seemed to be focusing on her intently without her knowing it. The lens' markings were even beginning to light up, and Ryokan concluded that the camera had to remain focused on its target to have the best effect possible.

Summoning all his strength, Ryokan reached with his right foot and nudged the camera to where his arm could grab it. He succeeded and, not having enough room to force the camera in front of her face again, instead aimed at what he hoped was the top of Kiyomi's head. The flash exploded across the room and sent Kiyomi flying, howling in pain as she shot straight up. Ryokan seized his chance and upstarted quickly. Aiming the camera again, he fired it a second and then a third time. The trio of flashes drove a piercing scream from Kiyomi's lips, and the demon vanished through the ceiling in a blur of red streaked light. Startled from the battle, Ryokan stood still and looked all around, half-expecting her to reappear again. Silence greeted him and the room's unnatural chill slowly vanished. Ryokan's heart slowed and he took a breath of relief. It was finally over.

xxXXxx

Ryokan backtracked from his house to Chitose's, feeling more confident than before. It was a weight off of his heart to know that he could defend himself if the need arose, but the old man knew that he shouldn't fool himself too much.

"You got lucky that time, but luck favors the prepared." He thought. "Next time may not turn out so well, especially if Sae returns."

It seemed that most of the spirits in this village expressed hostility based on what they knew of the people in question. That was good, since most of the villagers had respected Ryokan in life. There was a lot that could go wrong, though. Ryokan had used almost half of his film in that one fight, but at least he knew how to conserve it now. Assuming that Chitose was still alive, he would have to protect her on their way out of the village, but at least his mission was back on track.

_Speaking of your mission, where do you think you're going!_

It seemed that the Malice had found something else it wanted to say. Ryokan didn't grimace or react to its presence this time, because he was growing used to it.

_Your business in the shrine isn't done yet._

"Yes it is." Ryokan responded. "I found a way to defend myself and open the door that you refused to. I can get out of here and…"

_And then what?_ The Malice teased. Ryokan tried to answer the question and found that he couldn't. Deep inside of him, the Malice chuckled.

_You still don't have a way to find Yae. Go back to the Kurosawa house. Ryozo's work associate kept his belongings there. Among them should be some kind of indication as to where they were headed. Go find it now…_

Damn, Ryokan had forgotten about that. He didn't know where Ryozo lived. They could be anywhere in Japan by now. The Malice was right, but…

"Chitose." Ryokan's voice echoed. The Malice cackled loudly enough to hurt his ears.

_I knew finding her would be nothing but trouble for you. Chitose is a sweet girl, but she's weak. A blind burden that you don't need._

Ryokan frowned doubtfully. The Malice felt his mistrust.

_Listen, old man, I won't stop you if you insist on dragging her out of here, but Chitose was too frail even for the mortal world. Exposing her to the darkness of the house closest to the Hellish Abyss would terrify her beyond belief. The other spirits would sense her fear. It's safer to leave her in the closet, where she can't endanger you or herself, until you are absolutely ready to leave._

Ryokan adjusted the position of his court hat and thought it over. The Malice had a point.

"But my friend, Kanehira…"

…_is dead. And if he were really your friend, why would he endanger your life by forcing you to stay here longer than you needed to? Finding Yae is what must come first._

Ryokan rubbed his head as it began to ache. The Malice was doing something, making his thoughts hazy. Chitose and Kanehira's memories were becoming more and more distant. Before he knew it, he was back at Whisper Bridge, staring at the woman in white who was still sliding over the surface of the water.

_Go on, old man. It is what's best._

The former Ceremony Master tried to think, but he couldn't discern his own thoughts from those of the Malice. It did seem like a logical conclusion, and what were a few more moments for Chitose to wait.

Ignoring the returning guilt in his heart and trying not to picture Chitose's teary-eyed face, Ryokan turned away from the Tachibana house and crossed the bridge again.

xxXXxx

Returning once again to the document storage room, Ryokan didn't envy the task of finding useful information among the piles of papers. It didn't take as long as he had feared, however, for the letter that he sought was near the top of one of the piles. Addressed to Itsuki, from Ryozo:

_Itsuki,_

_I pray that you read this. I can't stay in this village any longer. I told Yae and Sae that I would come for them on the day of the ceremony._

_After they make it out of the village, I'll take care of them. Don't worry._

_When I get them out, I'll come back for you next._

_~Ryozo Munakata_

"Useless!" Ryokan tore the note in half in anger. He had to try something else. Perhaps Yae's room would contain more clues. As he walked over to the storage room door, the Malice's voice resounded again.

_Dear old man. You need to look deeper than that._

Ryokan ignored the words and reached for the door-handle. When he grabbed it, however, his body froze and a severe shocking pain surged through his body. It was intense enough to make him cry out continuously, and he had to close his eyes to block out the pain. The Malice shouted over his voice.

_I __**said**__ you need to look __**deeper!**_

When the pain stopped and he opened his eyes, Ryokan was not in his own body anymore. Somehow, the Malice had manipulated his sixth sense, and now he was witnessing the life of someone else. He didn't know who, until he saw a name written on a piece of paper on the desk that the person was currently sitting at.

"Ryozo." Ryokan thought. He could see through the man's own eyes that Ryozo was currently writing a diary entry titled "May 20, **1887**", so it couldn't have happened yet. The old man hadn't known that future sight was possible until now, but he ignored the strangeness of it all and focused on Ryozo's diary:

_We've finally gotten through the move to Himuro Mansion. I had a hard time cutting through all the red tape with the local officials._

_But, just as I'd hoped, the air is fresh here! It should be good for my wife, Yae, in her poor health._

That was all Ryokan needed to read, and the Malice returned him to his own body. He rubbed his head for a moment before a spark of horror lit up his eyes.

"Himuro Mansion. _That _Himuro Mansion. Is Ryozo insane!" Ryokan cried out, when suddenly he realized something even worse.

"…**Ryozo marries my daughter!"**

The old man broke at least two door hinges on his way out of the house. It was bad enough to think of Ryozo and Yae engaged, but the idiot had no idea what fate he was tempting by _living_ in the cursed mansion. The Himuro mansion, Ryokan remembered, had been the site of the Calamity a few decades ago, the first curse of its kind. It was the place where Kirie's spirit resided, and she was even worse than Sae. No one would survive in there for long.

Fortunately, Ryokan had plenty of time. The diary, written fourteen years after the current date, had told that Yae was alive. In poor health, but alive.

Emerging through the double doors, Ryokan ventured back outside and onto Whisper Bridge. Now that he had the information he needed, he could save Chitose and exit the village.

"_So…cold."_ The burdened voice of a woman came from the darkness. Ryokan froze in the middle of the bridge and scanned the murk for its source. It was the same white-dressed woman that he had seen so many times before, but this time she wasn't just floating listlessly. The drowned woman was closing in, glaring hatefully at him with pale, dead eyes. The air around him grew colder and Ryokan knew that she wasn't planning on leaving him alone this time. Wondering why she had targeted him just now, Ryokan turned back toward dry land and started to run when something struck him in the stomach from out of nowhere. The pain dazzled him and he fell to his knees nearly retching. When he regained his sight, the old man looked up and saw a veiled priest standing before him, staff banging the ground to produce a distinctive chime. But this was no average priest, and the drowned woman was no average spirit. Much like the last phantom to attack him, he had known these ones in life.

It was Kanehira and his dead wife.

"No, it's not possible!" Ryokan shouted in defiance, but Kanehira merely glared in response. His veil had been removed showing the murderous intent written all over his face. The Camera Obscura's filament confirmed the old man's fears by glowing a menacing shade of red.

_"You killed my son. You left my daughter to die. I won't let you get away!" _The priest snarled, and then stepped menacingly forward.

xxXXxx

Nice little cliffhanger there ;)

Some notes on this chapter:

1. About the Camera: I think it's bad style to use game terms in a story (like "type xx film" or "zero shot"), since it's a lazy substitute for a good description. So the only item names from Fatal Frame that I'll be using in this story are "Camera Obscura" and "stone mirror".

However, for anyone who wants to know, this camera looks like the one used in FF2. The film that Ryokan currently has is comparable to the game's "type 61" film (average power), as well as ONE shot of "type zero" (highest power in the game).

2. About Kiyomi: Yep, she's kinda gross as a spirit. This was my first time writing a fight scene, so let me know what you thought of it. The Ryokan vs. Kiyomi scene went on for a lot longer than I intended it to.

3. About the Malice: Still being a jerk. Please note that its dialogue is distinguished from other dialogue by the fact that it is in _italics_ but not "quotes".

4. About Ryokan: Currently stuck in a bad situation since he thinks he has no choice but to do what the Malice says. Now knows that Yae will be in danger, since she's going to live in Himuro Mansion (another crossover element from FF1). Kanehira and wife are mad that he didn't save Chitose first. Their battle will be seen in the next chapter.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	23. Chapter 23: Chitose

Thanks to Fan Of Games for another review. You complimented me on the twist concerning Yae and Ryozo, and asked if they were spirits in the first Fatal Frame game. Yes, they both were, and keep in mind that the idea to have Yae married to Ryozo wasn't mine. That, as well as them living in Himuro Mansion, are both canon details from the first game. The only credit due to me there was for the idea to include them in this story.

Sorry for the delay in updating, and I hope you (and others reading) enjoy an overdue new chapter.

xxXXxx

Chapter 23: Chitose

The hollow moans of the departed couple filled the murky skies. As they both approached Ryokan's position from separate angles, he pressured himself to hastily form a plan and move away from the threat. Retracing his path across the bridge, the old man quickly glanced at the drowned woman. She was drifting through the water, whispering death threats as she approached, but she was slow and closing in from a great distance. Kanehira was much faster, and much nearer.

"Leave me alone!" Ryokan cried as a flash from his camera filled Kanehira's eyes. The old priest stumbled back, grabbing futilely at the railing to keep his balance. Ryokan smiled briefly. If he could vanquish his former friend before the woman reached him, then he surmised that fleeing her would be possible.

Kanehira regained his full height, looking more imposing by levitating off the ground by a few inches. Still dazed from the light, he squinted malevolently at Ryokan, who didn't dare to hesitate. The old man lifted the camera up to focus on him again.

_"My daughter, my son...I have lost everything,"_ Kanehira rasped. While the ancient symbols that lined the camera began to light, the priest raised his staff and struck the ground with a loud bang. The chimes of his staff sounded, and with a flash of hazy light, three glowing white skulls appeared, surrounded by green and black flames. Not delaying they separated and surrounded Ryokan, who chose to ignore them momentarily in favor of striking Kanehira again. Another flash consumed the spirit, who growled irritably, turned away, and disappeared. Howling, one of the skulls charged from the front, and Ryokan dispatched it with his camera easily. The other two, however, rammed his back. They passed through him and faded away into wispy embers as Ryokan lost his balance for a moment and fell to his knees. He clutched his burning chest but leapt back up quickly and took another moment to watch for the drowning woman.

_"It hurts," _her voice came, but much to his horror nothing was visible on the water's surface. The black depths beyond the bridge were voided, but the old man knew she hadn't fled. Kanehira was missing from sight as well. He leaned out over the bridge's edge and peered down, thinking that she'd perhaps submerged herself.

Suddenly, a sharp pain laced from his ankle up through his leg. Ryokan gritted his teeth and looked down to meet the blank gaze of the drowned woman, her head and shoulders sticking up through the bridge. Dark hair covered most of her face, which was raw and corroded from years adrift in icy water. His eyes traced from her face to both her hands, which were locked tightly around his ankle.

_"My family is dead...because of you,"_ she whispered. Seeing his own chance as well, Kanehira came roaring out of the darkness with staff raised high. Panicked and distracted by the pain, Ryokan fired his available shot at the woman, who released him with a meek cry and descended back through the bridge. When he turned back to Kanehira, however, the camera hadn't reloaded. The phantom's staff struck his shoulder. The staff was vaporous but felt real enough, and Ryokan fell to the ground in a spasm of pain, allowing the camera to roll from his hands. It bounced a great distance away and came to a stop on the edge of the bridge, nearly falling in.

_"You could have saved her, old friend. Instead, you chose to let her die,"_ Kanehira growled, staring down at Ryokan without advancing further. Ryokan chanced a glance at the camera, which rested not far from him. He tried to take a breath, but his lungs felt heavy and hot, as if full of ice water.

_"You won't reach it,"_ the spirit hissed, _"She won't let you."_

At the mention of the woman, Ryokan forced himself to stand. Expecting Kanehira's wife to attack him through the bridge, he was caught off guard when water dripped onto the top of his court hat from directly above. Turning his head up, the old man immediately threw himself back with a fright. Free of her watery grave, the woman was drifting through the air towards him. Her arms dangled down, reaching for him like strings of spider silk about to snare a target. The old man turned to make a break for the camera. Unfazed, both Kanehira and his wife gave chase, floating along after him. Ryokan could feel the chill of their approach behind him, and one of the woman's arms grabbed his own before he could reach the camera. With her free hand, she reached out and grabbed his neck.

Gagging, he tried to breathe, but each attempt only made the icy weight on his chest greater. With the woman holding him in a standing position, the camera was too far away no matter how hard he tried to reach it with his free hand. He feared for a moment that he would be drowned above water by the spiteful woman, but Kanehira was too impatient for that. He walked toward his former friend with staff in hand.

_"I know the cold is terrible, but imagine the pain that my daughter and son must have felt," _Kanehira wheezed. Near unconscious, Ryokan's vision was beginning to blur, but he could make out the crimson outlines of the spirit's robes. Without his camera, he needed something else to use as a weapon, something that would affect the spirit.

_"My children are dead. Now you will join them!"_ Kanehira shouted and raised his staff with both hands, intending to finish Ryokan for good. While trying to free himself from the woman's grasp, it became clear to Ryokan what his best chance was.

_"And for the sake of your surviving child, no I won't!" _Ryokan shouted. Using his free hand to grab his trapped one, the old man pulled with all his might. A look of surprise crossed the drowned woman's face as Ryokan's efforts dragged her out of the sky. Before she had a chance to let go of him, Ryokan snapped his arms forward, sending her flailing body careening toward her former husband. Much to Ryokan's glee, the two spirits made solid contact with one another, and both ended up collapsed on the bridge in a heap of wispy smoke. The old man took his chance and, reaching down and scooping the camera up, fired the flash.

Both caught in the center of the frame, Kanehira and his wife screamed in agony and blurred together. The woman sunk back through the bridge, this time permanently, while Kanehira lingered on the ground for a moment.

_"Dare...to face down the darkness...and tell it...no more,"_ Kanehira whispered before fading away. Ryokan's heart softened at realizing that he had just seen his former friend for the last time, and he took one glance at the Tachibana house before resolving to go straight to Chitose.

He would have done that, if he'd had the strength to. Ryokan collapsed on the bridge near the hole where Kanehira's wife had fallen through, too tired to move.

"Ch...Chitose," Ryokan whispered, before the darkness consumed him.

xxXXxx

The former Ceremony Master awoke from his unconscious state some time later. His senses returned to him slowly, alerting him to the throbbing pain in his back and head that his collapse had caused. He sat up on the bridge and looked around.

"I survived that last battle," he reminded himself, and it then occurred to him what he was forgetting. "Chitose!"

Ryokan stood up quickly and stared at the looming edifice of the Tachibana house. A cold feeling struck his heart; how long had he been lying there on the bridge! Moments? Hours? Days? Chitose would certainly be dead if he didn't hurry!

The world became a blur as he bolted away from Whisper Bridge and toward the building still serving as her prison. He entered the house and rushed through door after door, his panic and breathing intensifying. He didn't understand it clearly at the time, but guilt, an uncommon emotion in his experience, was now assailing him.

"I'll get you out of there, Chitose. You'll see your annoying brother again," he growled determinedly. A final thought crossed his mind as he ascended the stairs to the row of tatami rooms: he had to make sure he still had film. Ryokan stopped and ejected the cartridge from the camera to look. Only half a dozen rolls were still unused, one of which would need to be used opening Chitose's door. After that, the one roll of golden film was all he had left, which he needed to save for the Kureha Shrine door leading out of the village. He had, at most, enough film to fight off one more spirit.

Finally, he arrived at Chitose's closet, with the light blue seal still covering its door.

"Chitose, are you all right in there?" was the first thing he thought to say. He tried not to sound worried, since Chitose scared easily.

"Kurosawa-sama, you came back for me! Can you open the door?" Chitose's sweet voice; Ryokan breathed a sigh of relief and rejoiced in silence on the other side of the door.

"I think...I mean yes, Chitose, I can get you out," Ryokan called back, a bit apprehensive. He still hadn't used the camera for this purpose, so he wasn't sure...

"Please, let this work," the old man pointed the camera straight at the center of the door and allowed it to charge. The door's seal had a different appearance through the camera's lens. Rather than just a blotch of blue, the seal was shaped to resemble a crowd of moaning faces. When the camera's last symbol had chimed and lit up, Ryokan clicked the shutter, filling the room with an unnatural glow. The crowd of faces on the door began to shift, becoming more and more obscure. Eventually, they disappeared altogether. When the last of the light left the room, Ryokan grasped the door handle and took a deep breath. At his pull, the door creaked and slid open, revealing the darkness of the closet inside.

For a moment, the interior was dark and silent. When Ryokan leaned in to look for her himself, out burst the bundle of crimson clothes and pale features that was Chitose! She barreled into him at full speed (not very fast for her, as Ryokan noted) and wrapped her arms around his waist in a thankful hug. Ryokan couldn't help but crack a smile, and he put his arms around her to return the embrace. A warm, comforting feeling came from this success, one that he hadn't felt since the days when Yae and Sae had been very little, before the world's darkness had consumed him.

"Thank you, sama," Chitose said, looking up at him. Their eyes met, and _that's_ when Ryokan noticed.

He could see straight through her, and she was cold as ice.

"No," Ryokan's voice trailed off, his smile instantly gone. He couldn't believe it, but it was true even if he didn't want it to be. Chitose was every bit as transparent as the other spirits Ryokan had seen and fought. Moreover, her embrace quickly went from calming to agonizing as Chitose's touch brought his death nearer without her realizing it. The physical pain, however, was nothing compared to the other feeling coursing through Ryokan's head: the realization that he was too late.

Ryokan knew what he had to do. He hated himself for having to do it, but he raised the camera, aimed it at her overjoyed face, and looked away.

"You have nothing to thank me for, Chitose," he admitted. With that, a bright flash emitted from the camera. Chitose staggered back, whimpering, and stared at him with a look of confusion. Her tears returned, and when she started crying again, the lights in the room snapped off instantly. While he was in the dark, the old man heard her shuffle past him, sobbing all the way. When the lights came back on, she was gone.

Ryokan stood there for a long time without word. When he looked inside the closet again, deeper this time, he saw her body, still with some color left in her face. She had died recently. From what he didn't know, but he he knew he could have saved her if...

...if he had just returned to her first.

"I'm alone here, now," Ryokan spoke dryly. He felt like he had to say it, since his decision had led to her death, and such a simple one at that. Leaving Chitose behind had seemed like the smart idea at the time, and maybe it still was. Still, she would be alive if he had ignored the Malice, as well as his own self-serving thoughts, and done what anyone else would have done had they been faced with the same choice. The guilt had returned, and the master of nothing knew it wouldn't be leaving any time soon. It was just like the feeling he'd experienced on the day that his daughters had run away, a day that, now, he wished he could forget.

"I broke my promise to you, Chitose. I'm sorry," he muttered feebly without tears. He would've cried, probably, had it not been for the dulling of his senses caused by the Malice, an entity that was trying without success to dampen Ryokan's remorse while also laughing at every moment of this spectacle. Ryokan entered the closet and covered Chitose's body with a nearby blanket. The old man said a prayer for her, even though he knew it wouldn't be heard, then turned to leave while he still had the strength. He slid the door closed as he exited.

Ryokan's emotions became duller, and when he looked at his sagging facial features in a mirror, he realized that he was tired. He hadn't slept or rested since the Repentance, and the cold wasteland was draining him of his strength. Yawning softly, the old man noticed the doorway that led to a sitting room, the one where he had often talked to Kanehira. Kanehira, another person, he realized, that he had betrayed.

Ryokan entered the room and found it empty. He lied down with his head on the nearest pillow. There were some reservations about allowing himself to fall asleep in this nightmarish place, but he wouldn't be able to defend himself with no energy. His eyes slid closed, and within moments, he was out.

xxXXxx

The next chapter should be up in a week or two. Thanks for reading, and reviews will be appreciated.


	24. Chapter 24: Another Way?

Thanks to Fan of Games for another review. Please note that I have slightly altered the format in which I write my chapters, to be a little more in line with common grammar rules. I didn't make a ton of changes, but if it's notably easier or harder to read, feel free to let me know. Also, I'm adding the tag "slight AU" to my story's summary, since it isn't canon for Ryokan to be alive after the Repentance. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.

xxXXxx

Chapter 24: Another Way?

There was no sunlight filtering through windows to wake Ryokan, as there usually was, and all the clocks in the village were broken. When he awoke from his temporary resting place, thankfully in one solid piece, there was no way to tell how much time had passed. He didn't really care either, because he felt the same way that he had when he fell asleep.

With the memory of what had happened to Chitose still very fresh, he still felt like a broken man, lost and devoid of hope. But rather than the same pure sorrow that he had experienced before, confusion now purveyed his conscience. The old man had made the same sort of decision that he always would've made, but this time he had failed. Actually, Ryokan had been experiencing a lot of failures lately, the most obvious being the Repentance itself. None of his plans were working, even though he was making his decisions the same way that all the other Ceremony Masters had before him. All Gods had thrived on the principles of the greater good for centuries, so what had changed?

Whatever it was, Ryokan had a feeling that the source of his problems was simple, obvious, like it was right in front of him but just out of reach. The Malice wouldn't let Ryokan think about it, though. It clouded his judgment, and made it near impossible to think about anything except the next simple goal. It wanted him to think "go and get Yae", but the recent emotions experienced by Ryokan had actually loosened its grip on him, and instead he thought "I need to tell Itsuki what happened. He deserves to know."

Ryokan left the building and headed for the storehouse.

xxXXxx

Kurosawa slipped through the gate quietly and stepped in, anxious of what Itsuki's reaction would be.

"My sister," a familiar knell reached his ears, "how can I find her?"

The old man peered around the corner of the storehouse, and his eyes widened. The outsider was standing before Itsuki's window, her face streaked with tears. When no response from the boy came, the girl turned and ran past Ryokan, whose eyes followed her. "Who are you!" he shouted, his frustration getting the better of him. She paid no notice, of course, disappearing into the shadows beyond the gate. This had been the strangely clothed girl's third appearance, and she was becoming more lucid. Her similarity to Yae was still keen.

"Kurosawa, is that you?" Itsuki called out, having heard him cry. The old man turned toward the storehouse window and shuffled toward it hurriedly. The boy was waiting there for him.

"Itsuki, did you see someone else at your window just now? What did she say to you?" he asked anxiously, hoping for an answer to any of the questions that he couldn't answer himself. A butterfly from nearby flew in front of his face, beating its wings playfully, but the old man shooed it away.

"What? What are you talking about! Just tell me if Chitose is okay!" Itsuki snapped, his face contorting with frustration. It seemed that Ryokan alone had the curse (or blessing) to be aware of this outsider. But Itsuki was right, he had come to tell the truth about Chitose, and now he would.

"I'm...I'm sorry, Itsuki. Chitose didn't make it," the old man hung his head in sorrow, and so did Itsuki. Soon after that, though, Itsuki raised his head again, and there was anger in his eyes when he did.

"Wait a minute," Itsuki's voice sounded hollow, "did you even _try_ to save her!"

The old man's heart started to race when the accusation flew toward him. He _had_ planned to admit to Itsuki that he didn't attempt to rescue Chitose first, but he hadn't expected to have Itsuki guess it. The white-haired boy knew him very well.

"Yes, I did. Just not right away. The Malice warned me that I had forgotten something important back in my home and..."

"And what, 'master'?" Itsuki said in a virulent voice, "What did you forget that was so important that you had to let Chitose die!" Ryokan tried to answer, but his breath caught in his throat, and he couldn't bring himself to speak. Itsuki, realizing that he wouldn't get his answer, sank back into the storehouse until he was obscured by its shadows. The old man couldn't see his face, but he could still sense the fury being written into it.

"I can't believe you. No, wait," Itsuki corrected himself, "I _can_ believe you. This is exactly the kind of decision you would make. It's no wonder that the people in this village died on your watch."

With that comment from Itsuki, Ryokan's desire to apologize vanished. He knew this was the worst possible time to start fighting, but nothing amplified his closeness to the Malice like being reminded of his failure to keep the village safe. Worse still, Itsuki didn't even understand _why_ he had failed. He wouldn't speak to him like that and get away with it.

"Stop right there, boy," Ryokan growled, a murderous glare supplanting the sorrowful one. "Don't stand in there pretending that you can lecture me about how to save lives. Nothing you did in life ever helped anyone!"

"What's that supposed to mean!" Itsuki flared angrily. A vibrating sensation drew Ryokan's attention downward momentarily, where he noticed that the camera's filament was glaring red. It didn't scare him away, though, since Itsuki was still stuck behind bars. The old man looked back up.

"You abandoned Chitose months before the Repentance even began. **That's** what it means. You made your plans to help Yae and Sae escape and carried them out, even knowing that you were leaving your entire family to die. Are you really going to look me in the eyes and tell me you didn't choose their deaths?"

Itsuki floated back up to the front of his window and grasped the bars tightly. He looked Ryokan _straight_ in the eyes. "What about my brother, Mutsuki? I didn't choose his death, you did."

"Well, in your noble attempt to stop the Crimson Sacrifice, you left everyone else behind, the ones who didn't have to die, all so you could have a chance to consummate your ridiculous relationship with my daughter. I know about the feelings you had for Sae!"

Itsuki's face turned red, both from anger and embarrassment. Kurosawa was sinking to new lows.

"It was never my plan to escape with Sae, even if she thought I would. I wish we could've been together, but I had to stay behind and atone for the sin of murdering my brother..."

"With **more** sins, apparently," Ryokan interrupted, "because you **still** left Chitose and Kanehira at the mercy of Sae's spirit. If that's your idea of a clear conscience, then I'm glad you think I'm immoral."

"You **are** immoral!" Itsuki spoke louder than Ryokan had ever heard him before. "You crucified your own wife, killed innocent people, intimidated hundreds of others into accepting your ideals, tortured the mourners beyond recognition, used my father as a shield when the Repentance struck, and betrayed your own daughters! They loved you, Ryokan, and they didn't want to perform the ritual. God knows anyone other than you who has!"

"Sae did, but you didn't listen to her either. As for Yae, she was just young and naive. They were both children, they had much to learn."

"Sae didn't. What can she learn now that she's dead!"

**"****Everyone is dead****!"**

Ryokan was the last person to speak before a long term of silence endured. The two stared into each others eyes, hating each other, but not knowing what to say or do. The wind kicked up, as if relieved after waiting patiently for the arguing to end, and rustled the trees behind the storehouse. It blew dust from the ground into their faces, but neither seemed to notice.

A few moments of listening to the calm running of water behind them calmed them both down. The camera's filament, measuring the space in front of it keenly from Ryokan's side, gave way to calming blue again. As much as Itsuki loathed the last Ceremony Master, he was unwilling to act on it.

"Well, none of this helps us, anyway," Ryokan was the first to speak, in a tired and hollow voice. "People have already died, Chitose being the last. I can't change that now. All I can do is try to break this curse. It'll give you all a peaceful afterlife, and stop this village from taking any lives in the future. That's all I have left to do, now that the Hellish Abyss is defunct. Fortunately, the Malice has helped me to come up with a solution."

Without delay, panic struck Itsuki like a collapsing building. He wasn't dumb and could see clearly that the former Master was not joking. But still, the Malice! The _source_ of All Gods' pain was Ryokan's source of hope! Itsuki _knew_ he couldn't let this go, especially since he was sure by now of what Ryokan was thinking of doing.

"You...you're going to bring Yae back here, aren't you! After all she did to get out?" Itsuki stammered, but Ryokan was very solemn as he nodded in reply.

"The Malice created this curse because I couldn't deliver the Crimson Sacrifice to it. If I can bring Yae back, then there's a chance that she can perform it with Sae's spirit."

"What makes you so sure that will work? Sae is already dead, and now you want to risk losing her sister too?"

"There's no certainty, only opportunity," the former Master replied. "I'm sorry, Itsuki. It's clear that you care about my daughters very much, and I appreciate it more than you will ever know. But I can't let you all rot here, least of all Sae, my other daughter. I failed to save both you and Chitose's lives, but I can still save you souls if I hurry. Again I am sorry, but it's time for me to go."

Ryokan turned and started to walk away, but his guilt and uncertainty were returning. Seeing Chitose dead had brought him nothing but grief and sorrow, and Yae was his own daughter. Even if it was for the greater good, maybe...just maybe...Ryokan was wrong.

Abruptly, the sound of his footsteps went silent. Not long before, he would've kept walking away, but the guilt held him back now. Chitose was dead because of him, so the least her owed her was to hear what her brother had to say. He turned back to see some cautious optimism flickering in Itsuki's eyes. The white-haired boy was grateful that Ryokan had stopped, but someone else didn't appreciate it at all.

_Don't tell me that you're taking this boy seriously! _The Malice communicated with Ryokan through the latter's mind, so Itsuki was oblivious to what it said. _He's the fool who put your village in the dirt in the first place. His plan to steal your daughters away caused this. You owe nothing to him._ The Malice tried to sound convincing, but for the first time its low, guttural voice was a bit panicked. The old man wondered why this was. At any rate, he had decided to stay and listen even if the Malice didn't want him to, so he dared to ignore its words.

"Okay, Itsuki, you want Yae not to be brought back to this village. If you have any better ideas than mine, please voice them now."

Itsuki's heart raced eagerly, but he didn't smile, and immediately he was nervous again. He hadn't expected Sae's father to listen to him, but now there was the issue that Itsuki didn't have any great ideas. He had to think quickly, before the old man changed his mind and decided to leave. Fortunately, Itsuki had read many books in order to plan Yae and Sae's escape, and one of them might have the solution that Ryokan needed. In particular, one book came to the forefront of his memory. Itsuki knew Ryokan would be interested in it, because it had been written by someone that the old man would trust. It wasn't the best idea that Itsuki could come up with, but it was considerable, and it was all he had. The white haired boy nodded mentally to himself and put his suggestion to action.

"There was a diary," Itsuki started, "that another Ceremony Master wrote. It was old, at least a couple of centuries. I remember reading some of it a few months ago, and I think its contents could help you come up with a better plan."

The old man's eyes narrowed with curiosity. Reading the memoirs of another Ceremony Master was a good idea, but most of All Gods' rulers thought and lived alike, so there wasn't much hope that this one's life had housed any unique secrets worth probing. Nevertheless, he took a deep breath and decided to question further.

"What does the book hold that can help me?" he asked.

"I don't know," Itsuki replied honestly, trying his best to keep Ryokan's temporary trust. "I didn't finish it. I do know the Repentance almost occurred during his reign, but was prevented by something that he did. It's too late to undo the Repentance now, but if he was able to stop it, maybe you can learn enough from his life to devise a way to break this curse. It's worth a try, isn't it?"

"Maybe," Ryokan answered sternly, his common sense returning. His own life was still in jeopardy here, and nothing would get solved if he died. "So, where is this book?"

This was the question Itsuki most feared to answer, but he shrugged and spoke plainly.

"It's in the Tsuchihara house."

Ryokan stiffened nervously and stared at the boy in disbelief. He felt like a weight had just been attached to his lungs. It had been decades since anyone mentioned the long-forgotten house of the family that had tried to betray his father. They were nearly as taboo as the Hellish Abyss, so of course Itsuki had explored there.

_You see?_ Sensing its chance, the unwanted tenant in the old man's body tried to gain back his attention. _Itsuki is leading you to your death. This whole charade is a lie. Why else would he tell you to visit the least safe place in the village? That perilous house was chancy __**before**__ the Repentance, most of all to you!_

He grimaced at the Malice's true words. The Tsuchiharas were probably unsettled spirits that would attack him on sight if they could. They hated his family, they hated _him_. However, he didn't think that Itsuki was lying or trying to harm him. If he was serious about saving Yae from the village's jaws, then he wouldn't risk foul play.

"Itsuki," Ryokan went silent for a moment, a feeling of unease building in his heart, "are you sure about any of this?"

Itsuki shook his head, but delivered a friendly smile to his former enemy that succeeded in calming Ryokan some.

"I'm not, to be honest. But I think trusting the Malice is a bad idea, and so is bringing Yae back here. Besides, I know you'll return safely. The one thing I can count on from you is being too stubborn to die."

Both Itsuki and Ryokan chuckled a little at that, but the latter shook his head in silent skepticism. This derisory plan was a violation of everything he had once believed, and an unnecessary risk. The original plan still seemed like his best shot. Still, he owed Chitose a favor, and Itsuki had raised enough concerns to make the old fool just doubtful enough. The Malice was panicked about something. There was no sign of the self-important calmness that it had been exorcising ever since it possessed him. Why not?

_Fine, Itsuki, you win._ Ryokan thought, or maybe those were the Malice's words. It was a bad sign that he couldn't tell the difference. _I will trust you and take your advice, but only this once. If I find that you have wasted my time, I will leave, and Yae will face her destiny._

Exhaling deeply, Kurosawa nodded to the white-haired boy, who felt his waning hope revitalized.

"Itsuki, there is still one problem," Ryokan admitted. "I no longer remember where the Tsuchihara house is. It's been erased from all maps, and abandoned for decades. I don't think any paths still lead to it."

Itsuki wasn't daunted to hear this. "Well, we'll just have to walk through the forest, then."

"...what do you mean '**we**'!" Ryokan spat out in surprise. Itsuki shrugged.

"You said you don't remember where the house is, so I'm going to help you find it," he said with confidence. Kurosawa took one look at the bars on his cell and frowned.

"You're not helping anyone from inside there."

"Well, then open the storehouse door and let me out. You have the only key to unlock it," Itsuki pointed out, prompting Ryokan to feel foolish for a moment. It had escaped him, but upon reaching into his kimono, he found that the key was still attached to a string and hung around his neck for safe keeping. Of course it was; he had held onto it to make sure it would be impossible for Itsuki to escape, but now such was inevitable.

The old man left the barred window and made his way to the prison's front. Stopping beneath the lonely lamp that hung over the door, he pulled the key out of his kimono and studied it. The bit of metal was jagged and rusted over, and its handle was carved with the shape of an octagon. Yes, this was the right one. After a few moments of hesitation, he inserted the key and turned it. A clicking sound greeted his ears, and the door creaked open to the darkness inside. The small building's exterior had been misleading, as the inside was littered with debris and the furniture was in disarray. Against the moonlight that shone through the opposite window, the shadow of a noose caught his eye.

After a few moments, Itsuki emerged.

"Let's go," he said, and with that the white-haired boy ventured out into the roads of All Gods. Sighing deeply, Ryokan forced himself to follow, and together they crossed the village. Itsuki led him around the back of the Kiryu house and along the dirt path until they reached a small wooden bridge. Beyond it was the fork in the road, with All Gods graveyard to the left and the Kureha shrine up the hill to the right.

"Come on," Itsuki said again, but this time he jumped off the road and onto the bank of the river a couple feet below the bridge, his weightless frame making no noise on impact. The old man steeled himself and leapt down as well.

"This river has a fork up ahead," Itsuki said, turning and pointing in the downstream direction. "The right path empties into the lake in front of your house, but the left one leads to the fields where the villagers worked. The Tsuchihara house is beyond those fields; you should see its silhouette once you're out of these woods."

"Why are you telling me...?" Ryokan started, but then he realized the truth. Itsuki...even though the storehouse was open, he couldn't venture far from where he'd died.

"Kurosawa, before I leave, I'd like to understand one thing about you, if you wouldn't mind telling me," the white-haired boy requested humbly. The old man nodded.

"I want...I want to know why you chose to live your life the way you did. You weren't always the cold, calculating person you are now. You were a father who loved his family. Please, if nothing else, tell me why you had to act so cruelly to those you knew, even though you didn't have to or even want to."

The former Master thought about that for a moment. How best to address such a question? Eventually, he settled on an answer.

"I chose to live my life this way, like the others before me, because people deserve more than the hope you speak so fondly of. They deserve an end to the problems that they can't solve themselves. That's why the first Ceremony Master founded this village. There was no trick to his motive, no secret reason. He wanted to help people by maintaining the Hellish Abyss so that it would continue to draw away the pain and madness from the world around it, and he wanted to do it no matter the price to himself and his followers. He lived for it, and died for it, just as everyone after him did. It's just a shame that Yae couldn't." The former Master turned to face the path that led back into the village, where the moon beckoned like a searchlight for its missing spirit. "You have your answer...now go."

Itsuki nodded in response. He floated lazily back onto the path, but before out of sight he turned with some last words in mind. "You're the only one still alive now. Except, of course, for Yae. She's your daughter, and the only person you have left. You still love her, even if you won't admit it. I promise that if you bring her back to this forsaken place, you'll die regretting it. Please heed my words, Kurosawa. Before you make your next decision, make sure that you can live with its consequences."

Having done all he could for Yae, Itsuki exhaled in relief. His body lit up and began to fade, his white hair reflecting silver light. Only when there was no trace of him left did Ryokan turn and set out along the dark path ahead of him, his heart strong and filled with resolve. He would not go back on his word again. This time, he would honor Itsuki's wish.

"Get ready, Eichiro Tsuchihara. Because I'll be paying you a visit tonight, whether you want me to or not!"

xxXXxx

Sorry for the sheer amount of dialogue in this chapter, but we're now seeing some changes in Ryokan's character. He's decided to give Itsuki's idea a chance. We'll see how that works out in the next chapter. Thank you for reading, and reviews will be appreciated.


	25. Chapter 25: Looking to the Past

Thanks to AuthorNicola and Fan of Games for reviewing. At over _10,000_ words, this is easily the longest chapter so far. It's amazing that it actually reached this length, but I also believe that it has the best quality so far. In the past, I have often reduced the length of chapters like this by splitting them into two, smaller chapters. I decided not to do that this time, but the point in this chapter where I _considered_ doing it is marked by a special scene divider that looks like this: [xxxxXXXXxxxx] If you think you won't be able to make it through the whole thing at once, that point might be a good place to take a rest. Any of the other scene dividers will do as well.

This will be the first chapter to take place entirely in a location not seen in the game. We'll be stepping foot in the Tsuchihara house, which means this is my first time doing the following:

1. Designing my own village location. Similar to locations like the Kiryu and Tachibana houses, but not identical, and hopefully it has its own original feel.

2. Writing my own "in game notes". You know, the scraps of paper that Mio would find on the ground in the game, that were written by characters like Sae and Ryokan lending info. as to their motives and feelings. Ryokan will be finding notes like that.

Also be aware that this chapter will expand greatly on content that was first introduced all the way back in the first chapter of this fic. Hopefully I did a good job, but if not then feel free to tell me in a review.

xxXXxx

Chapter 25: Looking to the Past

Doing as he had promised Itsuki, Ryokan followed the river path. The lack of natural light and thick canopy of trees made it difficult to see the way, so he relied on the sloshing sounds of the water instead. He also noticed the stench of decay growing distant as the main village gradually disappeared behind him. A few moments of walking brought him to the fork in the river, where he stopped for a minute or two, tempted to reflect on a small part of his life. These waters...Yae and Sae had played around them often, or so he had heard. Their father had never even been this far from the village, except for the day when he had led the effort to hunt them down.

A sigh of regret escaped Ryokan's lips that condensed into vapor in front of him. The village outskirts were colder than the interior, near freezing. Determined to press on regardless, the old man snapped himself out of the trance and continued on along the left fork. He walked for hours. Eventually the river grew shallower and dried up, but he continued to follow its former path dauntlessly.

Finally, he came to the forest's edge. Beyond its dark embrace, the top of a descending slope offered a view of the small valley beyond. This was where All Gods' food supply had once originated from, where the farmers and most other villagers had lived and worked. Now, like everything and everywhere else in the village, an endless sea of brown expanded before the old man's eyes. The fields had all rotted, their withered crops collapsed onto each other. Dense forests similar to those Ryokan had come from wreathed the entire valley. Above, the skies seemed clearer here than elsewhere, and for the first time there were no clouds obscuring them. Other stars blinked in the distance, scattered around the bright moon like grievers spending final moments with a dying friend. Despite this, the light-less void of the Repentance's curse hadn't relented, and it still expanded beyond the horizon.

At the opposite end of the valley, sitting on the forest's border, was the old man's goal, a sight he had never seen personally. The Tsuchihara's mansion stood there as a silent reminder of that day decades ago, when its family's rebellion had failed, all the inhabitants slaughtered as a result. Ryokan's own father had died in the fighting as well; _that_ he remembered clearly.

"I'm here, Itsuki," he muttered, although he knew the boy couldn't hear him, "so let's see if you were right."

Following the river with his eyes, he could see that it had originally emptied into a basin below. He didn't need to travel along it now, anyway, so he descended into the valley and trudged toward the house, shuffling his way past stalks of dried up corn and thick weed tangles. As he passed by, the old man couldn't help but notice that the _weeds_ were still green. The Malice had a bitter sense of humor that set his teeth on edge.

Cutting his way through the decrepit foliage with a growl of discontent, Ryokan made his way to the front of the house. The tangle became shorter and offered less resistance with each step, but any sentiment of peace that this offered felt weightless against the sight of the ground, becoming further and further obscured by the shadows that the old mansion cast down on him. When the weeds disappeared altogether, he halted for a moment. Taking a deep breath of the clearer air to settle himself, the old man turned his head up to gaze at the sight of the domicile up close. It was enormous, and every part of it except the front edge disappeared into the forest behind. Oddly enough, there was no garden in front, no elaborate thoroughfare, no barrier of any kind separating the fields from the door, design features that Ryokan assumed were in place to make the house seem closer and friendlier to the people that it oversaw. To him, however, the house looked almost offended by his presence, its face crinkled up in disgust.

He finally remembered, though, that the house did have a reason for appearing this way. Near the end of the fighting between his father's faction and the Tsuchihara's, a fire had started somewhere in the house, probably from a knocked over lantern or the like. It had burned unchecked until there was little left to feed it. Almost five decades of age had done the rest, and now the house's frame was curled and torn so greatly that dark holes in the walls were visible between broken and bent boards. Any detail of the house, including the location of the main door, were lost in the blackened void. As the old man's eyes climbed further up, the wall faded away into a skeletal lattice of support beams that wouldn't have stood out were it not for the dully colored trees behind them. Much of the roof had collapsed, leaving the illusion that the house didn't have a second story at all. Familiar as he was with the village's architecture, the old man knew this wasn't the case.

Ryokan's wayward thoughts scrambled back together as a twinkle of movement ran along the lower corners of his eyes. He looked down and quickly saw the shadow of a man standing in what must have been the doorway. He couldn't make out the shadow's exact appearance, but its shoulders were hunched and its body stiff, either from pain, rage, or defiance. Whatever it was, Ryokan could feel a glower of fury coming from it. He had fought off much more intimidating sights, though, and he merely matched it with narrowed eyes. Tightening his grip on the camera he continued to approach, his steps deliberately loud, and when he did the shadow retreated into the house in a flash. Muttering a low, almost animalistic grunt of satisfaction, he gripped the stiff door and forced it open.

xxXXxx

Inside the house, Ryokan marveled at the sight in front of him, his focus temporarily addled. The darkness of the field outside was matched by the darkness of the first room, with only a couple beams of moonlight shining through cracks in the ceiling to light the way. It was enough, though, to get a taste for the sheer _size_ of the room. A grand hall, with ceiling at least 15 feet high and opposite wall not even visible through the murky light. Strangely, the foyer was nearly empty, with little to no furniture decorating it. A few makeshift beds were haphazardly tossed aside, and smudged paintings of the surrounding landscape hung crookedly on the bare walls. Lost in his own thoughts, Ryokan didn't notice the doors to his left and right as he wandered into the room's depths. "What could they have used this for?" he couldn't help but ask.

Kurosawa ran a hand through his short, gray hair as he tried to figure out which direction to proceed in. He hadn't taken his first step when the crack of splintering wood from behind jostled him. His body twitched as he turned to see the entire wall warping with a steady series of resounding creaks. Each individual board that formed it straightened out, the wood snapping with enough force to send splinters flying at Ryokan's eyes. He raised his arms just in time for the lumber to bounce off of them. When he forced his eyes open and looked up again, the wall appeared brand new, although it still retained its dull black color. His eyebrows met in confusion as to why it had happened, but he soon noticed with a frown that the door, and its iron locks, were also fixed and in place. A shiver coursed up the old man's spine, he could feel the eyes of his enemies watching him at a distance, hungrily coveting what little of his soul hadn't already been consumed. This place hated him, the _house_ hated him, he could feel its walls closing on him angrily. Determined not to let them smell his fear, he closed his eyes tightly and fisted his hands in an attempt to fight off the weakness. As much as he wanted to leave, Ryokan's alternative was to willingly continue taking the Malice at its deceitful word. He couldn't do that, not while there was still hope (_hope_ - that damn word) of a better solution. Affording the door one final bitter glance, his long walk through the room began. Taking it one step at a time, Ryokan quickly found the door gone from view behind him, and when nothing but the floor was visible to his naked eyes, that's when he felt something nudge at his foot.

Startled, Ryokan bore down on the ground with his camera only to find the filament undisturbed. Sighing in relief, he set the Obscura down on the floor and stepped back to see what he had kicked. A spark of vitality lit his eyes when he saw the wrinkled cover of a small, black book lying at his feet. If this was Itsuki's book, then maybe he wouldn't have to explore the house after all. Kneeling down on the dusty floor, he opened its cover and read the first page. Disappointment put weight on his face when he found that nearly all of the pages were illegible or missing, but a couple near the front were still clear. Squinting to read in the lack of light, the old man voiced the words in his head:

_Tsuchihara Master's Note 1:_

_As of late, I've found it necessary to keep this log of my actions in the village. My relationship with the Kurosawa family and with the village itself has been changing._

_My meeting today left me and the lord at odds. I confronted him regarding the recent increase in disasters that have been destroying the homes of villagers, and he approved the hiring of shrine carpenters to build additions to my home, so that I might shelter them here. The trouble started when I mentioned the possibility that our rituals might be unnecessary, or faulty. He dismissed my concerns almost immediately, stating that if they had worked in the past, they would work in the present. I tried to dispute his claims, but there's no arguing with that stubborn fool, so I eventually gave it up and left. The twin boys Ryokan and Hikaru were playing nearby on my way out. They must be around eleven years old by now, and they're as carefree as I could hope my own children to be. I only wish they could know what the fates hold for them._

The old man's eyes glinted in understanding. "This place," he said exasperated, looking up at the void around him, "the Tsuchihara's didn't just monitor the villagers. They _cared_ for them." It was the only explanation for all the makeshift beds. This room had been used to shelter villagers who had lost their homes to natural disasters. Ryokan had always been aware of the superior size of the Tsuchihara's manor, but now he knew the reason for it. He also raised an eyebrow at his own mention in the note. He had always assumed that the Tsuchihara Kurosawa feud developed rapidly, but this note had been written at least four years before Ryokan took his father's place.

From out of the surrounding darkness, Ryokan suddenly heard a sharp battle cry. He dropped the book and looked up to his left, where the sound came from, and caught one glimpse of a face wrapped in bandages before the blade of a black longsword landed with a crack on his neck. Instead of death, a vision of the past burned its way into his mind, and in it he could see the soon-to-be dead man Eichiro, Master of the Tsuchihara family. Terror written on that man's face, Ryokan saw him open the front door and look out on the fields.

_"No, I'm too late,"_ the voice of Eichiro echoed in Ryokan's mind, _"they've come!"_

A furious dirge of shouting outside heralded a writhing mass of hundreds of people, mostly villagers. In a flash, Ryokan's own sight faded, and he instead found himself looking _directly_ on the vision through the Tsuchihara Master's own eyes. He felt the man's horror as his eyes darted panic-stricken between the torches and pitchforks held by the villagers. He felt the man's fear that his actions would be the cause of the death of his family. But most distinctive was the hate, the spiraling torrent of malice that sucked the blood from Ryokan's veins and the hope from his heart as Eichiro's eyes settled on one clear sight...

It was another man, far more imposing in his height and attire, who stood at the front of the discordant mob. The obvious leader of the pack, most of his body was masked by a fusion of jet black silk and dark silver metal. Gripped in the man's left hand was a blood-red katana that reflected crimson moonlight off its blade. The heavy set of armor came together at the upper torso where bronze plates etched with butterfly markings rested on his shoulders and hung off each side of his helmet. Where his face should have been, a demon mask sat with protruding horns, beady black eyes, and a leering mouth split from ear to ear in a vengeful grin.

Ryokan watched as Eichiro turned from the door and slammed it shut without a second look. He drew his own longsword as he passed the spot on the floor where Ryokan lied, cursing under his breath.

_"This village's rituals may not die,"_ Ryokan heard the man's words in his head, _"but while there is blood in my body and steel in my hand, neither will I!"_

With that, the old man felt himself coming to on the spot where Eichiro had struck him. He wasn't alone, though; the whole room was glowing with a bright orange and he could see immediately in the light that the room wasn't empty. There were more beds scattered around, and behind them the previously black walls burned and roared as a massive column of fire consumed them, bathing the room in an almost blinding glare and turning the air around him white hot. Ryokan put his hands on his knees for support and rose in the midst of a battle of not one or two, but _dozens_ of spirits. The mob from before was inside now, their ghastly features blurring into each other as they lumbered about. Among the thick crowd of destructive villagers and angry priests were a few angrier men fighting with desperate rancor. The well-armed but badly outnumbered men were, Ryokan reasoned, the surviving Tsuchihara members. Even the women in the family had picked up _anything_ sharp and joined the battle to save their husbands, but they couldn't even save themselves.

The awful sight that had been kept from him as a child drove Ryokan to the brink of his sanity. Worse, the massive fire was roasting him alive, but it had also illuminated the far end of the room where a door sat _waiting_ to be opened. Exploding into a run, Ryokan readied the camera and tore across the battlefield. Villagers, blinded by rage and unable to recognize him, swung farming sickles as he passed, but the old man dove under them hitting the ground with a sharp thud. When he picked himself up, he had to throw himself away _again_ as a support beam from the roof came crashing down, depositing burning embers on his kimono's sleeve.

Shell-shocked from the near collision, Ryokan rose up dizzily and tried to make sense of the fire spreading on his arm as cries of rage and pleas for mercy rang out all around him. He tried to pat it out, but the flames _grew_ when he touched them and starting crawling up his shoulder. In agony from the burning of his exposed flesh, Ryokan quickly reasoned that, like the human spirits around him, the fire was probably a phantom of what had once been. A flash from the camera snuffed the flames out in an instant. As if enraged by his refusal to die, the ceiling above groaned and started to crack, but Ryokan didn't wait for another beam to fall. Faster he ran, past distorted visions of people being massacred, catching glimpses that he wished he hadn't. Men being skewered, women having their scalps torn off by their exceedingly long hair, all while massive shadows danced along the walls like eager spectators egging the fight on. Ignoring the horror behind him Ryokan continued his run across the impossibly large room. At last he reached the door, opened it, and threw himself forward.

Silence greeted him on the other side. Like a light being switched off, the spirits and fires had flashed out of existence the second that he left the room. Not trusting their sudden absence, Ryokan grabbed the door and shut it quickly, and when he did it groaned and locked itself. The parlor trick wasn't as scary the second time he saw it, and Ryokan simply turned away from the door to look for another one. The room was thankfully much smaller than the previous one, about twice the size of his study, though the pots and pans scattered about suggested this had been a kitchen. The only door out of it was barricaded by a monstrous collapse in the ceiling, but the rough slope created by the debris also provided a means to access the floor above. Craning his head up, he could see the moon clearly through large holes in the roof of the second floor, lending some light as to how badly damaged most of this house was. He eyed the unstable pile of debris warily, but he wasn't about to explore the rest of the first floor unless he had to. It would be freezing up there, but the former Master preferred that greatly to the burning fires down on his current level. Nodding to himself, he seized the nearest piece of sturdy timber and climbed.

xxXXxx

Like the first floor, most of the second floor was a cadaverous remain of its former self. The walls were thin and the roof had burned away in several places. Nearby armchairs and shelves were singed dark and looked too rickety to stand. As he tried to haul himself up, Ryokan nearly slipped on something lying on the floor he was attempting to reach. His heart pounded for a moment, but he dug his fingers into the second story floor and forced himself back up until he was sitting on it with his legs hanging over the edge. He inhaled deeply to flush the dust out of his lungs and picked up the source of his near-fall. More sheets of paper, he found, intact ones that Ryokan moved into the moonlight to read:

_Tsuchihara Master's Note 2:_

_I've taken to reading that book more and more lately, the one written by the old Ceremony Master. It's hard to describe my admiration for his writings. He performed his duties like any other, but there was something different about him that I cherish and wish that our current Master had in common. We should all be following the advice that he put forth in his book, but instead we're stuck with the despondency of his successors._

Another deep breath filled Ryokan's lungs as he allowed the papers to fall to the floor below, creasing in the air as they sailed down. At least now he knew that the book _was_ around here somewhere. What else could Eichiro have been referring to?

"Despondency?" he repeated the last word both out loud and in his head. It had several meanings: listlessness, dejection, hopelessness, but All Gods had always been like that, regardless of who wore the conical, white court hat reserved for the Ceremony Master. The book's enigmatic author couldn't have been very different.

Something shifted in a nearby hallway. He sensed it, but when he jumped up and raised the camera to fight off a potential attacker, the spirit he saw didn't move. Its face was obscured by the same demon mask that the old man had seen in the fields, and the same silver armor reflected the moon's milky glow.

_"What you seek..._" the spirit's heavy words trailed off, but Ryokan caught a glimpse of its finger pointing down the hall to the left before it disappeared. There was no one in the hallway when he stepped into it, but Ryokan did find another few sheets of writing at the floor where it had stood:

_Tsuchihara Master's Note 3:_

_A few years ago, a mourner went berserk and somehow fought his way up to the surface world. He entered the Kurosawa house and tried to kill Ryokan, son to lord Sengoku, when he was still very young. The priests killed him before he could succeed. I checked my study's records, and according to that book, attempts like this one have been made several times before in this village's history. I still don't know why they're being carried out, but I have my suspicions, and I don't think the mourners are acting alone._

_This was the incident that first shook my faith in this village's traditions. When Sengoku recovered from the shock of the attack, I met with him to address my concerns. Our relationship has been souring ever since, and I fear that it won't survive much longer._

This...was not something Ryokan had expected to find. His childhood was well behind him, but it didn't help when he realized how close to death he had apparently come back then. More haunting was the implication of why a mourner, a being that had all but forgotten the outside world, had enacted the oddly specific motive of trying to kill him. He would've assumed that they were angry over the conditions of their imprisonment underground, but Eichiro had been convinced of worse motives.

_"This way..."_ Ryokan heard the same spirit's voice again and looked up in time to see a thin stream of black mist disappearing behind a distant corner. He ran through the hallway and arrived at a small room where another hallway met. Where a wall should have been standing, Ryokan could see an unobstructed view of the forest that sat behind the Tsuchihara house, its thick, gray trunks extending up from the distant ground endlessly. The spirit was standing at the opposite end of the room, facing an (intact) wall with a large, ornate double door at its base. Ryokan attempted to approach it. Scary though it was, there was something strangely endearing about this phantom, almost as if he knew it closely. Apparently it didn't know _him_, though; when he got too close the spirit turned to face him and drew the katana halfway out of its hilt. The camera's filament flickered red for a moment, but when Kurosawa backed up nervously, the spirit turned away again, seemingly not aware of him any longer. It was focused on the door, and remained so as it silently drifted forward and disappeared through the wall, leaving a black stain on the surface. Ryokan blinked owlishly when he heard the sound of running water beyond the door, and he stepped steadily forward apprehensive of what could be waiting.

xxXXxx

Another door, another miraculous room. This was the garden that Ryokan had been expecting to see outside, but its location on the second floor was definitely impressive. The room extended at least fifteen meters in every direction, and the floors were actually constructed from _marble_, a building material that All Gods hadn't had access to in centuries. The walls seemed taller than elsewhere in the house, and there was no hint that a roof had _ever_ been built above. It was depressing that most of the plants had burned with the rest of the house, and the ones still intact were the same shade of dull gray that all the plants in the village now were.

Walking along the marble paths, Ryokan navigated his way around and made it to the garden's center, where a working fountain sat as the centerpiece. The marble was sculpted into two men standing side by side, or at least they had been. The leftmost figure, a man wearing the traditional Ceremony Master garb and court hat, had been knocked over, and now lied in big chunks at the bottom of the fountain. The right figure, a man that Ryokan didn't recognize, was still standing proudly, wearing a straw hat from under which a veil of water fell. It temporarily baffled Ryokan to wonder where the water came from, but its dark hue convinced him that it was drawn from the only source that hadn't completely dried up: the river.

Behind the fountain lied a more interesting sight. One of the paths that led away from the fountain ended in another double door with a black smear on it. Ryokan walked toward it, hoping to see Eichiro's study on the other side. He found his wish granted, and while the "study" behind the doors was as enormous as he had expected it to be, most of the books had been consumed by the fire leaving him with blissfully little searching to do. Stepping in, he looked around for some distinguishing sign of a shelf with more important contents than the others. The door slammed shut behind him and locked, but it would hopefully open with a shot from the camera. Four shots left...

Most of the shelves and desks were disorganized, their papers strewn about. Several alcoves were visible in various directions. At the end of the room, Ryokan came to stop at a fairly large spiral staircase that provided access to a third floor that Ryokan hadn't known existed. At the center of the helix sat a family altar similar to his own, with the obvious exception that this one was in complete ruin. Ryokan would have assumed that the fire blighted it, but the notes lying at the altar's base said otherwise:

_Tsuchihara Master's Note 4:_

_My last meeting with Sengoku concluded today. As expected, he's given the "serve the Abyss or die" ultimatum that has so greatly come to represent his family. Most of it, anyway._

_My family altar is gone, destroyed by my hand. Though it may be blasphemy to do this, I must admit I haven't prayed for some time now. My father, and his father before him...they were no better than the Kurosawa family. Most of them, like the rest of the people in this village, saw no problem with the manner in which we were ruled, and the ones who did were too gutless to act on it. They would say we had no chance of assuming control of this village, that trying to disband it would fail, that we should wait for a more opportunistic time to make our stand. Cowards; there is no better time than now. Disasters in this village are becoming more common, and sacrifices are failing more frequently. All Gods already has a foot in the abyss, but the Ceremony Masters can't seem to notice it, or choose not to. They won't be satisfied until their ignorance kills us all._

_**I**__ won't wait for it to happen. I had to tell a few white lies to get the others on my side, but my family and I are finally in agreement. Soon, the sacrificial chambers will burn, and this village's ancient lineage will come to an end. And no, it will not be "for the village", as it always has been. For the first time, it will be for the people who live and die in it._

Setting the note down, Ryokan felt for the first time that he might have an idea of why the Tsuchiharas rebelled. It was a constant in All Gods that the lives of the villagers were hard...very hard. It didn't seem quite right, though. The Tsuchiharas weren't idiots, they knew why the village existed, knew their work would save far more people than it ever hurt. There had to be more to their betrayal than this.

Still no book had been found, and the old man now had only one direction to choose. Allowing his hand to slide along the railing, he climbed the staircase to the third floor slowly, distracted by the almost hypnotic sound of his feet hitting the steps. The stairs and railing were cut from the same marble as the statue. It seemed like all the heaviest rooms were at the top of the house and it was a wonder that the place was still standing after the fire. Then again, he hadn't seen much of the first floor, so maybe there were just stone or marble supports he hadn't seen.

Ryokan closed the final few stairs and surveyed the room with a hint of optimism in his heart. It was a comparatively small space, about eight square meters, with a marble floor and no furniture aside of two bookshelves and one desk that sat in the center with books still intact. The walls and roof above sloped into a conical shape. They were intact too, but plain save for one large circular window through which the moon watched quietly. The dark, wooden walls and ceiling contrasted strongly with the white floor and made the old man feel like the room was isolated in its own lonely dimension.

The desk's intact chair teased Ryokan with the promise of rest, and he walked to the center of the room and sat down, his muscles aching too greatly to permit him to continue. Almost immediately a book on the desk caught his eye, but Ryokan didn't pick it up immediately. He was too tired to do anything but stare up through the window with lidded eyes as the moon gradually disappeared behind the gray clouds outside. Free from his other distractions for a moment, the old man's mind dragged him back to the question of why he had come here in the first place. Risking his life on a hope this vague, second guessing his actions, mourning the death of one person so greatly, they were all things a leader should never do.

"I'm a different shade of my former self," he thought, "but I guess that makes sense for an old man like me. The world is far more complicated than I remember it being. All I had to do was keep the rituals running, and I used to be good at it." Ryokan's shoulders stiffened angrily. "And then the _Malice_ had to get involved."

An uncomfortable rigor held his body. Eichiro's words in his diary still haunted him, especially the bit about the mourners. They were borderline insane creatures, not capable of stealth or any real strategy. A veiled priest might have been pulling the strings on the one that tried to murder him, but it was unlikely. That left _one_ other possible mastermind, the one who kept the mourners company in the darkest reaches of the village's underground...

"I've rested enough," he decided with a spike of raw determination. He looked down at the book and found a few loosely gathered pages covering it. The words on them were disorganized and sloppily written; it looked like they had been penned in a hurry. Frowning impatiently the old man skimmed them:

_Tsuchihara Master's Note 5:_

_This will be the last entry to this journal. Sengoku and his followers are outside my home, at least half the village! How the hell did he gain so much support so quickly?_

_Ryokogu, I am sorry, but I don't think I can keep my promise to you. I wasn't able to convince Sengoku to see the light, nor was I able to remove him by force. But even if every one of my family members dies, it will be a fight that the Kurosawas will never forget. Maybe some day, future generations will come to realize what you have, but I won't dare to hope for that. For better or worse, this village __**will**__ come to an end someday, that I am sure of. Goodbye, my friends, I'm sorry I drew you all into this, and it has been my honor to know you in life._

_And Yuzuki, if by some chance you escape my fate and make it back here to see this message, promise me that you'll leave this village while you can. Promise me...that you'll be safe._

Sudden suspense gripped the old man's heart as he set the notes down and looked at the book underneath them. Its title, "_The Demon's Teeth: The Life of Ryokogu"_,matched the name that Eichiro referred to in his final writings. The name was familiar to Ryokan as that of the Ceremony Master that _he_ had been named in honor of. He had ruled around two or three centuries ago, and although most of the specifics of his reign were lost, he was widely regarded by those who knew him as one of the best Ceremony Masters in recorded history. That still left no clue as to why Eichiro admired him, but the old man felt a pang of relief that Itsuki had at least sent him in search of a book worth finding. With it in his possession, Ryokan rose from the desk and determined that he should leave before his good luck began to sour. He could read the book once he was out of the house.

Making his way toward the stairs, Kurosawa felt his confidence terminate when the room began to creak and groan, its boards pitching back and forth impatiently. The sky outside vanished, leaving the room much darker than it had been before. The old man didn't wait to be attacked and rushed to the stairs, only to find them strangely absent. The first steps of the spiral staircase were there, but most of them disappeared down into pool of black liquid. He bent down to investigate it, but pulled back immediately as an arm rose out of the ooze to swipe at him. He kicked himself away from it and backpedaled with eyes fixed on the appendage. It disappeared as quickly as it had come, and with a small breath of relief Ryokan turned back to the desk.

Someone sat there, waiting for him quietly. Fear rang through the old man's body now as he observed the illusory figure. It had its back to Ryokan as it bent its head down to look for the book that no longer gathered dust on the desk. Muttering angrily, the wretch drew a labored, heavy breath as it picked itself up and shuffled into a standing position. A gnarled right hand covered in bruises reached down to the figure's waistline to draw a black sword. Hairs on the back of Ryokan's neck stood on end when the shadowed figure turned to face him. He lifted the camera up and prepared to fight anyway, but couldn't help but stagger back in terror when he saw its face. Eichiro's face...

[xxxxXXXXxxxx]

The "face" of Ryokan's enemy was almost entirely covered with bloody bandages and twisted by a mixture of grief and rage into a psychotic grimace that couldn't have been human even in life. What flesh was still exposed was marred by slashes and scars. From beneath the poorly tied wrappings blood poured onto his wrinkled face and stained his gnashing teeth crimson. Clumps of black, snarled hair extended out of the soggy wrappings, jutting from his head at odd angles. Under one of these stray locks, one uncovered eye fixated on what it perceived to be Ryokan's father.

_"So...you've made it this far, have you Sengoku?" _the voice wavered as Eichiro struggled to prevent his blood loss from causing him to pass out. His knees buckled and he swayed as he walked forward, but when he finally removed himself from the shadows, Ryokan saw that he wasn't alone. A group of four other spirits lumbered out of the darkness, following Eichiro so closely that it was difficult to tell if they weren't fused to his body! They were all covered in soot making it difficult to spot any detail, but the old man recognized one woman and two men in the crowd, as well as one child that attached itself to Eichiro's left ankle. They all groaned in pain, holding onto him and each other almost desperately. _"Well then, don't let me keep you __**waiting!**__"_

The Tsuchihara master broke into an impossibly fast charge dragging the mass weightlessly behind him. Ryokan barely had time to move before an overhead swing of Eichiro's sword nearly cleaved him in half. He jumped to the side and flashed the camera's lens at the writhing corpus of flesh. The surrounding family members shrieked in low-pitched voices and Eichiro covered his free eye reflexively. One of the men in the group wailed particularly loud as he floated up and detached from the mass, eventually fading away to nothing. The remaining members grew angrier, and Eichiro sunk through the floor before Ryokan could fire another shot. Three shots left...

The old man moved to the middle of the room and waited for Eichiro to reappear. Expecting an attack through the wall or perhaps the air, he was caught totally unaware when two pairs of arms reached through the floor to grab his feet. When he looked down to find his target, Ryokan's vision begin to blur. It felt like his body was being scalded by unseen flames and his eyes watered in an attempt to repel imaginary smoke. In a fright he fired blindly where he felt the hands holding him, a costly mistake. Two shots left...

When he succeeded in forcing his eyes open, the first sight he saw was Eichiro's face as his sword made contact with Ryokan's stomach. Though the sword had no physical substance and couldn't touch him, the inferno of pain it brought caused him to collapse anyway. Eichiro tried to follow with another strike, but the old man rolled away too quickly. Pulling himself up, he quickly saw Eichiro charging forward. The spirit hunched its shoulders and lowered its head as it ran, giving Ryokan an unobstructed view of the woman trailing him. Her body ignited as she came closer, and with a shriek the banshee attempted to cuff him with a flaming arm. Ryokan ducked in time to see smoke and curling flames trail above him, but Eichiro seized his own chance and delivered a swift kick to the old man's ribs with what felt like enough strength to crack them. Again he drew his sword and advanced with it.

_"What you have done to my family,"_ Eichiro stumbled forward relentlessly as the old man backed up to the room's edge, _"I will do to you a hundred times over!" _Ryokan felt the cold embrace of the wall against his back. Unwilling to be pinned down, he pumped energy into his legs and ran to the spirit's right. A horizontal chop missed him by inches and Ryokan felt his skin roast where the writhing entity's black aura touched him.

Eichiro turned, his eye flaring angrily, and with a wave of his inky sword the spirits surrounding him broke off and fanned out around the room. The former Master looked around worriedly, his chances of survival were slipping with each shot he fired. At this point, his last two rolls of film would have to be perfectly placed to defeat all four spirits, otherwise he would have to resort to using the golden film that he was trying to save.

"Let me out of this tower, Eichiro, and I won't have to harm any more of your family," Ryokan invoked his enemy's fallen comrade in the hopes that Eichiro would relent, but it didn't work.

_"Not until one of us is dead,"_ he growled, madness shining in his bloodshot eye. He motioned to his remaining followers. _"Subdue him..."_

The man and woman hovered for a moment and twitched mechanically before swooping down one at a time. One would charge into range and make a grab for Ryokan while the other retreated to build speed and attack again. Under the constant barrage it was all Ryokan could do to prevent from twisting his back in the process of ducking and dodging them, but the battle cry uttered by each upon attacking gave him a rhythm by which to move. The instinct to clear a path out of the assault with a shot from the camera went unheeded; he knew he couldn't afford to waste anymore. The old man's heart pounded faster as he tried to think of an alternate plan. While easy to dodge, the spirits were relentless and at his age Ryokan knew he would grow tired soon. In the midst of the confusion, Eichiro appeared in front of him with his sword drawn back.

_"Die,"_ his voice rasped as he hunched his shoulders and pitched the blade forward. Its tip grazed the old man's chest as he attempted to fall back. It felt like a brand had been dragged across his body, but he fought to stay conscious and focused as he dodged Eichiro's following swings. Finally, the crazed spirit stopped its assault and glided back. _"Your reputation as a warrior is well earned,"_ he said as his body vanished through a wall, _"but your kind is well known for making mistakes."_

Kurosawa's eyebrows met in confusion as to what the Tsuchihara man meant, but his confusion faded when a wave of heat folded itself around his lower back, forcing a half-growl, half-yell from his lungs. It felt like a ball of lava was working its way up his spine, and when he looked down to find its source he nearly choked on his astonishment. The pale arms and legs of a small _human_ were wrapped around his lower torso.

_"You didn't notice that the child was missing, did you?"_ Eichiro mocked. Ryokan couldn't believe he hadn't noticed, but it was true! When the phantom had glided back earlier, nothing had been clutching his leg like before!

Sweat glued Ryokan's kimono to his skin as the boy scaled his body, trying to reach his throat. The blistering heat was intolerable and any attempt he made to shake his small aggressor off was useless. The boy was inexorable and held fast. Luckily, he hadn't dropped the camera in his panic, and with a spirit not two inches away it had charged instantly. With no other option available, Ryokan relented his stingy strategy and hammered the boy's face with a flash when he finally came into clear view. The child released him and recoiled, wailing as he twisted into a ball of smoke and exploded on the floor. **One** shot left...

"Show yourself, demon!" Ryokan yelled, gasping for breath, "I know you're still there!"

_"Your commands no longer carry weight here!"_ Eichiro yelled. The voice came from all angles and the old man couldn't pinpoint his location. _"Even if you destroy me today, it will make no difference. This village can end peacefully, its villagers returned to the world outside. Or, they can both die horribly in some yet-to-occur disaster. It's your choice."_

"What the hell does that even mean? Why did you...?" Then Ryokan stopped abruptly, mouth still open from shock. He was such an idiot; Eichiro was trying to distract him so that he wouldn't notice the surprise attack about to come! And if it was a surprise attack, then it could only come from one location...

"Through the floor!" he shouted, leaping forward just before two pairs of hands reached through the marble tiles to seize him. When he snapped around with a charged shot ready, both of Eichiro's remaining servants got caught in the same frame. Light from the camera filled the room, and when it faded no hint of either of them remained. Ryokan didn't celebrate, though, in fact he hung his head in shame. He had failed to get the better of Eichiro with the regular film that remained in his arsenal, and now he would need the special film to finish it. Escaping the village would have to wait until he found more somewhere, and that was assuming he could drive the ghost away in one more shot.

Aiming the camera in front of him, he focused the lens at the ground where Eichiro started to appear. As the spirit rose through the floor he clicked the shutter, but a dull whirring was all that resulted. The Obscura wasn't working and he worried for a moment that it had broken, but it appeared that the new film just loaded and charged more slowly than the previous type. He needed to stall...

"Why did you try to end my village?" Ryokan continued the same line of dialogue he had stopped earlier.

The Tsuchihara man eyed him, his face unchanging. _"Because I had to!"_

"But _why_ did you have to?" the old man snapped, his voice reaching a higher pitch. This conversation was already irritating him.

The spirit didn't give an answer and floated forward, the hand that held his sword twitching eagerly. The old man needed something to make him stop, he couldn't take another hit from that blade and live.

"Years ago, my children Yae and S..." he hesitated, remembering quickly that Eichiro believed him to be Sengoku and the names of Yae and Sae would only confuse him. Armed with that knowledge he started over. "Years ago, my children _Ryokan_ and _Hikaru_ would tell me that this village needed to end, too. They said they didn't want to live in a village founded on a ritual that tortured others, that trying to prevent suffering was self-defeating if we caused it as well." His plan worked; the madness left Eichiro's eye and he lowered his sword slightly. So far so good.

"What of it?" the Tsuchihara man questioned, his bruised body tilting from side to side slightly. Ryokan peered down inconspicuously to check the camera. Damn, still charging...

"It feels like I've explained this thousands of times in my life, but in case you've lost too much blood to comprehend it properly, I'll talk slowly. Degree...**does**...matter. We sacrifice two people a decade exactly, but in doing so we save hundreds of people in this village _and_ hundreds outside it, who would've died from the curses that our Hellish Abyss prevents." All that his words earned was a patronizing smirk from the phantom. Ryokan could feel his face reddening from frustration, this dead man was somewhere between arrogant and delusional. He might have to hear it from the _very_ beginning.

"Do you remember why this village was founded? To _prevent_ suffering, overall, through whatever means. I know to _some_ people that means that we can't ever cause it, but this is a world populated by humans. Suffering can't be eliminated, but it can be reduced, which was, is, and will continue to be our job whether or not you decide to martyr yourself."

Eichiro still didn't respond, but he looked affronted by what Ryokan had said. He closed his eye and shook his head from side to side. _"Villager safety...was __**never**__ the reason for my actions. At least not completely."_

Now Ryokan was the one who felt affronted. Eichiro's reply completely contradicted what had been said in his diary entries and the old man briefly comprehended the possibility that he was simply too insane to keep his story straight. But...he had been sane enough to plan strategy, so it wasn't likely. Were the contents of the note a lie?

"I have read your diaries, Eichiro," he earned a look of surprise from the ghost, "they say you did this for the people living in this village."

It took mere moments for the apparition to decipher Ryokan's meaning. His eye drooped as he nodded in understanding. _"Ah yes, I remember. That quote at the end of my fourth entry was...a deliberate half truth. I had to keep my motives clouded and sweet sounding to gain support. Most people don't like big words. However, there were other meanings in that phrase. Read it more closely if you want to understand so damn much. I remember what purpose this village serves, and I __**used**__ to believe it would continue to serve it until the end of time."_

"But something in Ryokogu's book changed your mind?" Ryokan leaned forward eagerly. This wasn't just stalling anymore, he wanted answers from the spirit.

_"Yes, you could say that, but you didn't listen to me when I tried to explain it to you then so why would you now?"_ the Tsuchihara man growled. His erratic state of mind was carrying him back toward anger, that glimmer of madness was present in his eye again and his obsidian sword was raised once more. Fortunately, the camera was almost ready. _"I eventually came to realize that no one would ever emulate his actions and that's why I led this uprising. Without rulers like him, this village is unsustainable."_

"But **why**!" Ryokan was openly shouting now. The camera was charged, but he was close to getting something more than a book out of the risk to his life that he had taken. This was the revolt that led to his _father's_ death, and this was his chance to hear why its leader started it all. "If your first reason was a lie, and the second was half a lie, then what's the truth! **Why did you try to destroy my village, god damn it!**"

Eichiro just glared, the blood dripping into his eye completely forgotten. "I'm done talking about this. Why bother to ask questions when you're about to die?"

The psychotic rebel charged before Ryokan could demand an answer. Ready to reflect the threat he raised the camera and focused on the specter's face. The mechanism hummed loudly voicing its desire to banish the demon back to hell, but before either it, Ryokan, or Eichiro could act, something echoed through the room that halted them all.

_Tap, clang, tap, clang..._

Both apprehensive, Ryokan and Eichiro turned to the source of the noise. Something was making its way up the stairs, not impeded in the slightest by the pool of black scum that had stopped Ryokan. The clang of metal and tapping of feet made its way in circles around them as its source came closer, until finally the point of a helmet came into view, followed by a demon mask, followed by the unmistakable black kimono of the man that Ryokan had already seen several times.

He didn't know how to react. Any sense of self preservation he had was momentarily smothered by a sudden desire to see what the man behind this mask looked like. It seemed obvious, only one man would have come up here for the promise of a duel against the master of the Tsuchihara house, but he still needed to see his face.

Eichiro was distracted too, in fact he looked like he had completely forgotten about Ryokan's existence. All of his hate was reserved for this other spirit now, his teeth bared furiously as the challenger drew a katana streaked with blood.

Ryokan opened his mouth to speak to the spirit, but both it and Eichiro yelled furiously and charged before he could. The house started creaking and groaning as their blades met, sparks flying into the surrounding air when they collided. For several minutes the old man watched, unable to muster the common sense necessary to run for his life. Not even when he felt the floor buckle underneath him, sagging dangerously as the fire now burning on the floor below diminished its integrity.

The masked spirit took an opening and bludgeoned Eichiro with the hilt of his katana, causing the latter to fall to the floor groaning. Rather than finish his foe off, the spirit turned to Ryokan quickly and removed his mask. The face underneath it looked exactly like what Ryokan remembered from fifty years ago, the last time he had ever expected to see it.

"Father..."

A tear rolled down Ryokan's cheek as fifteen years of childhood flooded back to him. Sengoku offered him one small, sorrowful smile, but the reunion between them was cut short by the loud shattering of tiles as a section of the floor collapsed, revealing a raging inferno beneath. Sengoku's eyes widened in terror when he looked down. The whole room would be impassable within moments.

_**"Ruuuuuuuuun!"**_ he shouted at his son before twisting back to block an overhead swing of Eichiro's sword. Needing no further warning Ryokan tore down the stairs, which were thankfully clear of unnatural blockages. He ignored the aching in his joints and bolted down the steps and through the bowls of the fire, holding his breath to stop the smoke from entering his lungs. Before he had a chance to remember the locked door ahead, he reached it and was relieved to see the fire doing him some good for once. It had burned through the wood completely, leaving nothing but a pile of timber that Ryokan eagerly stepped over.

Through the garden he ran, bounding down small staircases in one huge leap. A palm tree combusted ahead of him and fell in his path with a loud snap, but there were plenty of alternate routes to take out of the garden. "Where the hell did the Tsuchiharas get these plants!" he couldn't help but wonder as he reached the double doors. They were burned open as well, and when he ran outside to the hallway that bordered the forest he leaned out over the gap and took a breath of relatively fresh air.

After several second of heaving, the old man resumed his escape, taking off through the hallway that he had ventured down. He could see with horror that several gaps in the floor were present up ahead, but with no time to find another way around he gritted his teeth and leapt over them, thanking the gods when he cleared each one successfully. He lashed around the corner and made his way through the final rooms of the second story as the fire sundered them. There was no time to be careful when he finally arrived at the room where he had scaled from the first floor. Quickly dropping onto his rear the man slid down the steep incline to the kitchen below, screaming in anguish when a jagged board broke his slide. The unforgiving splinters entered his flesh, but it was a minor injury compared with what the fire would do to him.

The old man battered down the door that led into the final huge room. The fire was three times worse now and the entire chamber was understandably abandoned. The exit was broken down up ahead, but he couldn't see it for long as the blinding smoke forced his eyes closed. Not stopping the son of Sengoku focused on his father's face and barreled forward in what he hoped was a straight path. His father probably thought he was an idiot for ever coming here, but he had Ryokogu's book now and he _would_ get out with it!

As soon as he felt a blast of cool air on his face, Ryokan threw himself away from the house and onto the ground. He stumbled to his feet again and dragged himself away to a safe distance in the fields, turning to watch as the fire tore through what was left of the house. He had mere seconds to realize that the house looked much larger than it had when he first arrived at its borders, but not for long as the burning manor finally collapsed from the top down. The fires chewed up what remained of it, then burned themselves out, completing the grisly reenactment of what had happened on the night before Sengoku's reign ended.

Ryokan wanted to faint in the fields as a well deserved reward, but despite his immense luck in escaping the house he knew he had no time to waste. His body was growing weaker, and sooner or later some threat would present that he couldn't overcome. Haste was necessary. Besides, he _had_ his reward; the book Itsuki favored so highly was still clutched safely in his hands, along with the camera _and_ his shot of blessed film unused. The wisdom of Ryokogu was safely in his possession, that could not be overlooked.

"If..." he stopped to draw another ragged breath, "there is any hope for the salvation of Yae's life, any proof of the things Itsuki has spent his life trying to convince me of, any answers to _any_ of my questions, they are inside this book somewhere. Hope may be fleeting, but I _have_ to believe that." Breathing a final sigh of relief, Ryokan rose haphazardly to his feet before stumbling out of the field, one step at a time. Before out of view he turned and gazed at the pile of ruins one final time and...

...froze in his tracks as one final loathsome worry seeped into his bones. Pile of ruins...he was looking at a _pile of ruins_. The house was _still_ different that what he had seen upon his arrival. When he came to its doors, although severely damaged, the house had still been standing with an intact first floor, _at least_. Now nothing was left but smoldering remains. The fire that Ryokan had felt when he first entered the house may have been purely spiritual, but what had taken place in the Tsuchihara house this night had been more than a bad memory repeating itself. Sengoku had seen Ryokan and _spoken_ to him, which should have been impossible. And at the end, what had remained of the house had been destroyed, by a _**real**_, physical fire.

What had started the second fire? It couldn't have been an accident; although the village was bone dry, there was no catalyst to start the blaze. The only possible spirits in the village with the capacity for something like this were the Kusabi and Sae. But the Kusabi was too stupid to comprehend any destructive tool other than its own claws, and Sae...she would've revealed herself to him at some point.

"If neither of them started the fire..." Ryokan whispered, a tremor running through his body...

"...who did?"

xxXXxx

Ah yes, it's not truly a story until a character has leapt from a burning building in dramatic fashion. :P

The next chapter will be up in a few weeks. In it, Ryokan will read Ryokogu's book and reach the revelation that will define his character for the remainder of the story. I hope I've managed to inspire some curiosity in all of you. I _tried_ to hint throughout the recent chapters of this story that its plot has been reaching toward a turning point, so if you think you know what it is, feel free to speculate. Reviews are always appreciated.


	26. Chapter 26: Ryokogu's Legacy

Thanks to Fan of Games, AuthorNicola, The Hermit Dragon, and Texty Monster for reviewing the last chapter. Especially big thanks since most of you left good feedback telling me what you liked or didn't like about the chapter. I'm back with another update after about a month of waiting. Not as long as my last update, but it still clocks in at around 7,000 words.

Please note that this chapter is a bit strange, and very different from the others. We're exploring the plot here, and for the first time in the entire story, the questions that have been set forth in earlier chapters are finally going to start being answered. In particular, the following two questions will no longer be mysteries:

1. By now we're aware of some force operating in the village (the "unknown third party", as Fan of Games put it). What is this third party, and what is its intent?

2. It's commonly disputed in the Fatal Frame world, as well as among fans of the game, who was at fault for the Repentance. Is it Ryokan's fault since he tried to perform the ritual with only one twin, or are Yae and Sae to blame for fleeing the village in the first place? You'll start to learn the answer to that question in this chapter, but the answer might not be what you're expecting, so brace yourself.

This chapter also has something in common with Chapter 21. That chapter contained first person narratives from Ryokan's point of view. In this chapter, there is _also_ some first person storytelling marked off by special scene dividers that look like this: (xxxXXXxxx). However, the narration is from **Ryokogu's** point of view, **not** Ryokan's! We're gonna get to see stuff through his eyes. Finally, be aware that some of the locations and events from Fatal Frame 4 make an appearance in Ryokogu's history. Yes, the **fourth** game is in this, but there are no spoilers from the game itself, so you can read it without fear if you haven't played the fourth game yet. And if you don't know anything about that game, don't worry. Everything should still make sense to you.

Sorry that this chapter is a bit boring, and can get confusing in places. Remember, if you're confused about something and have questions, do not hesitate to ask me in a review or PM. I check my account here very often and can quickly answer questions about this chapter if you have any.

xxXXxx

Chapter 26: Ryokogu's Legacy

Back in the center of All Gods village, the gate to Itsuki's storehouse swung open as Ryokan staggered through, his legs ready to give out under him. He knew he had no time to waste (the Malice impatiently told him so), but the old man was exhausted, and potentially near death. He couldn't even remember the last time he had eaten, and the inky river water was like poison to him. His joints ached, his head throbbed, and his heart was keeping an unnaturally high pace. Surviving in this village would probably be easier for a younger person, but Ryokan had been nearing the end of his expected life even before the village fell under its curse. It was sad, but he had to face it...he was just old.

Plus he was still worried about the fire that had nearly killed him. He knew it couldn't have been an accident. Whoever had tried to kill him with the fire hadn't been the first, of course; this potential assassin was just another to add to the growing list of monstrosities, human or otherwise, that had tried to kill him during his life. This one, however, had come _too_ close, and there was the question of who or what had caused it.

"Maybe an old enemy of mine is still alive in the village somewhere..." Ryokan wondered as he sat down on the soft dirt, fighting the urge to keep his heavy eyelids from closing. "Itsuki, are you up there?" he called softly. No answer came for several minutes. Frowning, the old man hauled himself up and stumbled over to the window. Peering into the dark storehouse, he found Itsuki's body hanging from a noose tied to the rafters. There would be no more help from him tonight...

With no one to talk to and the Malice interfering with his ability to think, Kurosawa's attempts to nail down a possible identity to his would-be slayer didn't come easily. So many people had found reasons to hate him in life, a curse that most Ceremony Masters were familiar with. Kiyomi, Kanehira and his wife, Sae, Yae, Itsuki, Eichiro, Yuzuki, Seijiro (now the Kusabi), Ryozo, and possibly others.

The Repentance had killed most of them, and their spirits weren't smart enough to comprehend fire as a weapon. It was possible that one or more of them had actually survived, but the only people that Ryokan _knew_ were still living were Yae and Ryozo. The attacker couldn't be either of them, though. Yae may have hated her father, but she was far too kind to carry out a plot that involved killing him, nor would she allow Ryozo to do it for her. Besides, they had nothing to gain from returning to the village. More likely they were still in the Himuro Mansion, blissfully unaware of what would happen to them in the later years of their lives.

That left Sae and Itsuki as possible culprits, them being the two clever enough to actually start a fire, but he had already ruled Sae out. Itsuki, on the other hand, had _sent_ him to that house, all to find a book. He had loathed Ryokan in silence for most of his life. Had the search for Ryokogu's book all been a trick to lure him into a trap?

_"I think trusting the Malice is a bad idea, and so is bringing Yae back here."_

Ryokan stiffened slightly as the white haired boy's words echoed through his head. If Itsuki was still capable of speaking to him, the Malice would surely be _his_ choice for the one who started the fire. It was a sensible conclusion for someone who didn't know better; the Malice was a conscious embodiment of evil, after all. But it still needed Ryokan to help further its goals. The demon wanted the sacrifice, meaning that it needed Yae brought back, which Ryokan couldn't do if he was dead. Plus, the Malice was already integrated into his body and soul. If it really wanted him to die, it would've killed him already by stopping his heart, or something similar. Of course, his heart was already beating abnormally fast, so maybe the Malice was doing just that, or trying to, anyway.

One thing was clear. If the Malice really was trying to kill him, it would have a reason. A _good_ one, something powerful or important enough to supersede its desire for the Crimson Sacrifice. It seemed unlikely that such a motive could even exist, but it was always possible, and if it did exist, maybe a clue to it was in the book.

"That settles it," Ryokan echoed his thoughts in a hushed tone as he turned the book's velvet cover, "if nothing of value lies in this book, then Itsuki did try to send me to my death. In that case, I will leave the village and return with Yae. But, if I do discover something, then what comes next, and what will I do? I guess it depends on what I find."

The book wasn't very long, and seemed to be Ryokogu's memoir of his own life. The old man opened it, glad that it didn't appear to be long to the extent that he would have to skim everything. He was expecting Ryokogu's story to match what he had been told as a child, anyway, so there likely wouldn't be many surprises waiting for him.

Immediately, a map drawn on the inside of the book's cover caught his eye. It was a map of the world, with several X's marking destinations. Most of them were scattered around Japan, but some marked locations as distant as China, Australia, and even Europe. "He didn't seriously visit all these places, did he?" the old man wondered. Quickly shrugging off his confusion, Ryokan started to read the pages.

A couple of hours passed, with the old man trying to ignore his surroundings as he read. Even though he knew that his current location was relatively safe, the heightened state of awareness he had been in since the Repentance was biting into his ability to focus. Even the slightest sound of a twig snapping in the woods behind him would rile his fears and force his eyes away from the book and toward the noise's point of origin for several minutes.

The old man was beginning to lose hope of finding anything useful in the strangely boring pages when he reached the middle and stopped. The next chapter was marked with a strange disclaimer:

_Even if this book makes it safely back into the village, I expect it will be destroyed by the veiled priests if they find it to contain any subversive content. But it took years of research, endless travels, and a lifetime of wisdom to finally collect enough knowledge to draw my conclusions, so to keep them safe I'll be hiding the more important points in the book's center, and marking them with my special seal to prevent their alteration or decay. If you try to damage these pages, the damage will attack your own body as well, so keep out if your intent is to ruin me even further._

_To everyone else, welcome. I'd like to jump straight into sharing my discoveries with you, but I don't think you'll understand why I even searched for them unless you know something personal about me first..._

Suddenly curious, Ryokan examined the nail of his left forefinger before bringing it down to scratch the page very lightly. At once, a similarly light scar appeared on the back of his hand, which he needed to squint in the dark light in order to see clearly.

"From the look of it, this book was written in a location outside the village, and the word 'safely' makes it sound like someone didn't want it here. But...if he was the Ceremony Master, the one whom the priests were supposed to _serve_, why the secrecy?" the old man wondered. Finally, it seemed the old book was keeping its unspoken promise to tell him something interesting.

_Have you risked our life enough yet? Hurry up before you pass out on the ground._ The Malice interrupted him before he could read further, again sounding oddly anxious for him to keep moving. Ryokan obliged its request anyway. Staying in the same place for too long was dangerous, and even amidst his fear, exhaustion was beginning to get the better of him. Actually, the drowsiness went **beyond** normal fatigue. He was nearing the loss of consciousness that so often preambled death, and the best way to avoid it was not to get too tired or too exhausted. To stay alive, he would have to read while alternating movement and rest. Grunting softly, he rose as his bones cracked in protest, and with some delay he staggered wearily toward the gate, passing through it without even remembering to check the road for signs of danger. He kept the book open in front of him, grazing its pages as his subconscious mind steered him around the village:

_**I. My Life**_

_Twenty years after I became Ceremony Master, I was starting to believe that nothing would go wrong during my reign. I can't really explain why. Chances are that, if you're from All Gods village, you believe that I was responsible for the golden age that we enjoyed while I watched over us. What you don't know is that, until the time just before I left my village, I hadn't been any different from any other Ceremony Master. It was good luck, and nothing more, that led to those successful years that people mistakenly attribute to me now. Seasons were kind to us, wars in surrounding lands ceased which made the village easy to defend, and crime plummeted for no reason that I could determine. It's ironic that, when I finally did something worthy of real praise from my peers, they instead fought to erase evidence of it from existence, but more on that in a moment._

_Our happiness, especially mine, was shattered a few mere days before the planned date for the next Crimson Sacrifice. When it happened, it happened so quickly that it didn't seem real until it was over, like a nightmare brought to life. A mourner, several of them in fact, had collaborated to cause unrest in the Hellish Abyss. It got so bad that guards had to be called away from their posts to quell the riot, and in the confusion one or two of the creatures infiltrated my house. By the time I realized what was going on, it was too late. My elder daughter, Tsuzuru Kurosawa, had been murdered by them. Worse, my younger daughter, Tsuzuki Kurosawa, found out about it soon after. Refusing to believe it, she instead believed her twin had run away and that I was just covering it up. The grief and anger consumed her, and she had to be imprisoned in the storehouse for her own safety. My wife was traumatized by the occurrence. I lost..._

"Aaaahhh...!" Ryokan's head jerked up from the book instantly as he slipped on the dirt road and came crashing onto his knees...hard. Biting his lower lip to fight the urge to yell any further, the old man clumsily shifted his weight, so that he was sitting on the road rather than kneeling. Shutting his eyes tight, he grasped his aching legs as stabbing pains rippled up them, all the way to his head, where he could see spots dancing around his eyes. Fortunately, the bones didn't seem to be broken. "Well that's perfect! At least the pain will keep me awake."

Taking the opportunity to look up at his surroundings, Ryokan recognized his current location after a moment of dizzy staring. He was sitting in front of the Tachibana house, near the path that led to the Kureha Shrine. Come to think of it, this was the path that he might need to take anyway, so he might as well continue his inane venture in that direction.

But...although he hadn't walked very far, the old man was already too weak to move anymore. He would need more energy to survive the walk through the forest that followed using the Kureha Shrine door, so he decided to sit down underneath a lighted coal brazier in front of the house. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, the old man enjoyed the soothing heat of the flames. Before daring to immerse himself in the book, the nervous man took one final survey of his surroundings, turning his stiff head with some difficulty to check every corner and shadow for possible threats. It was difficult to judge the relative safety of his location with his tiredness casting a fog over his senses, but it did appear that he was alone in front of the house, and the only audible sound was the constant crackling of coal in the brazier above him. For a fallback plan, he could always dart into or behind the Tachibana house and hide if any spirits materialized nearby. Knowing this, Ryokan turned his head down to the pages and explored the book further.

_Looking back on it now, I can't say that I'm surprised that Tsuzuki reacted in such a horrible way, even though it contradicted her formerly kind nature so greatly. This is how all twins in this village act, without exception. In their relationship, the elder twin always wants to spend her life with the younger twin, at any cost. But the younger twin will claim that they can be together only in death, and he or she will die, or even kill, to see this dream become a reality. Neither of them are __**ever**__ sympathetic to the other's wishes. It's sad, really; in a world where the twins are supposed to understand each other so intricately, they really turn out to be quite stubborn, and selfish, in the end. They're no better than the stubborn Ceremony Masters._

_It's a dynamic has existed and thrived for centuries. Why should my twins be any different? _

_The veiled priests universally claimed that an uprising among the mourners, staged due to poor working conditions, was the cause of their attack, but I think that even the priests are smart enough to realize that this isn't true. The mourners are as fiercely as loyal to the village as the priests are, but unlike the priests, they don't possess most of the reasoning and emotional capacity necessary to any "revolution". They're mindless, and there's no way that they did this. Not without help, anyway..._

_They also suggested that I should sacrifice Tsuzuki alone, to appease the abyss, but what I chose to do instead was far different from anything that they ever would've suggested. With only a couple of days left before the sacrifice was due, I made my choice..._

Now Ryokan was on the edge of his seat, and he felt alert again. The feeling that he was about to learn the truth to why Eichiro had admired this man so much burned at the back of his mind, but before he could turn the page to continue, a hollow moaning forced his attention away. At first Ryokan didn't think too much of it, but almost immediately he became painfully aware of something. The howling cry that was rapidly closing in from a nearby road...he had heard it before.

"The Kusabi...!" Ryokan immediately rose from his seat, hitting his head with a sharp cry on the coal brazier in the process. Uttering a metallic groan, the brazier hurled sparks around itself, but Ryokan was far from caring about that. He hurried toward the Kureha Shrine path, where he would be concealed by the forest's shadows, but soon after he stopped abruptly. He had left the book behind!

"No...!" Stupidly Ryokan turned around and ran back into view. He scooped up the book just as the monster's gray mist materialized around the corner of the Osaka house, but by the time it lumbered into view of the area, the old man had absconded once more. Taking a brief moment to rest behind the house, Ryokan sighed deeply before pressing on. His movements were labored now, but they still carried him to his goal, if slowly.

_And here I was starting to worry I'd never see it. _The Malice rejoiced as the Kureha Shrine came into view. Ryokan reached the stairs that led up the hill to it, and started to climb. _Hurry, hurry old man, you're close now!_

Ryokan rolled his eyes at its words, but continued his ascent all the same. Cresting the hill, Ryokan came face to face with the door of the old temple. Quickly he approached it and tore the door open, stepping inside the wrecked room that made up the Kureha Shrine's interior. He walked toward the back, where the village's hidden escape route waited to be used. The blue seal that had already stopped him once was still there, but this time he had a way to break it. At once, the Malice spoke up.

_Well, what are you waiting for? Your village's freedom and my sacrifice are just beyond the door. Go on...break the seal..._

Ignoring the Malice's words, Ryokan became enveloped in the silence of the room. He held up the Camera Obscura and loaded the long-saved golden film into it. From the machine a whirring noise signaled its readiness to obliterate whatever spiritual presence he pointed it at. There was nothing else to stop him from leaving if he chose to. This...could be the end of his ordeal.

It made him feel strong to know all of this, but it also scared him. He felt almost beyond life itself, dazed and haunted in the knowledge that his future would likely be determined by what he pointed the camera at, right now.

"It looks like my night has finally come. But...now that it's here, I don't feel ready for it," he admitted.

The familiar weight of Ryokogu's book at his side reminded him that there was only one more thing to do. Setting the camera down, he tried to open the book again. At once the camera screeched in an attempt to warn him, but before it could a blinding white light exploded out of the book so quickly that the old man's reflexes didn't even notice. An otherworldly sense of weightlessness gripped his soul as a new vision enveloped him in its embrace.

When the blinding light cleared, Ryokan found that he no longer had any control over what he saw and felt. The effect felt akin to watching a projector video. Currently, he was staring at All Gods from atop a tall hill, where the beginnings of a road led out of the village. Since All Gods hadn't had any real roads leading out of it in at least five centuries, he realized that this must be the _distant_ past.

Then he noticed someone standing to his left, looking on forlornly at something. He wouldn't have recognized the person if not for the striking resemblance he bore to Ryokan himself. He was noticeably younger, slightly shorter, and was wearing the same white garb that all Ceremony Masters wore.

"Ryokogu...amazing," Ryokan thought, "Are these...am I witnessing the events he wrote about in his book?" The old man followed Ryokogu's line of vision curiously and noticed the rather large sight that he was gazing at. It was an impossible sight, one that he had thought would never be seen in the village:

Huge crowds of villagers, moving in thick lines out of the village with packed belongings in tow. Around them, spaced at regular intervals, veiled priests kept watch to make sure everything stayed orderly. There were enough people present to equate to the entire village's population. That was the clue that told Ryokan what he was seeing.

"Oh my god..." Ryokan said aghast, "it's an **evacuation**! This is what Ryokogu did when the sacrifice failed? To think, leaving like a coward and...**no**!" Ryokan's disgust quickly shifted to himself as he realized he was trying to rationalize a way to ignore the book's attempt to help him. "Be smart, Ryokan. There's no room for me to be stubborn or dogmatic, not this time! Ryokogu can't help me unless I let him." With that, the old man payed attention quietly to the visions that were shown to him, and he also listened carefully to Ryokogu's _words_ when he began to hear them in his mind.

(xxxXXXxxx)

I evacuated the village. I had to, even though it's never been done before. It wasn't easy, and it took hours to convince the priests to go along with it, but we were able to get the civilians into the forest, beyond the borders of the village. My reasoning was that, if the Hellish Abyss erupted, it wouldn't hurt any of them if they were outside its reach. We took food and enough supplies to survive in the forest for a few days, and when it was over, myself and a few priests returned to the edge of the village to see if it was still standing. We were relieved to see that there were no signs that the Hellish Abyss had overflown.

To this day, I don't regret my choice. We got lucky this time; the Hellish Abyss didn't destroy itself even though we missed a sacrifice (although that might not be a coincidence, as you will soon see). Still, I think of what would've happened if the Repentance **had** come. I still would've lost the village, but not a single person would've died. That made this a **good** decision, as well as my first true success, as far as I'm concerned.

But the veiled priests were **furious** with me, as were most of the other villagers. In fact, it wasn't long after the end of the evacuation and subsequent return to the village that whispers of a _revolt_ being planned against me began to stir. I didn't think much of them, at first, but the veiled priests used the opportunity to enact a plan that I never saw coming. See, before the evacuation, I had been revered and held up by them as an icon of what a good Ceremony Master should be, and it didn't suit their agenda well when I displayed a willingness to abandon sacrifice as the sole tool to solve their problems. They mutinied, banished me to the forest, and fabricated one of the greatest lies in village history. They told the villagers that I had committed ritual suicide to atone for my "mistake", thus absolving me of most of my "wrongdoing" in their eyes. My false legacy was preserved in the village, while I was abandoned and left to die in the middle of nowhere.

Fortunately, my family still believed in me. My wife, and even my surviving daughter Tsuzuki (who had overcome her grief by then) found me in the forest and helped me to reach the relative safety of a nearby town. Once I was healthy enough to travel again, we headed south, where the director of an offshore sanatorium known as "Rougetsu Hall" was kind enough to grant us asylum.

Even if I had been forced to leave my true home, I was content just to have my family with me. For years, I enjoyed Rougetsu Island's natural beauty and spent time with my family. My daughter grew up, strong but never truly independent due to her sister's absence, and became a woman. My wife and I volunteered to do charity work in the hospital, and although we were never allowed in certain areas, it just felt good to help others in a way that didn't involve sacrifice. For the most part, I was at peace with myself, although I still missed and cared for my old village, even though it had abandoned me. I would worry about its people, wondering if the Ceremony Master that replaced me was up to the task of keeping them safe.

Our paradise went uninterrupted until I was in my early 40s. During the beginning of summer of one year, my daughter (now 24 years old) approached me and told me that she had been nominated by the people of the island to participate in a special festival called the "Rougetsu Kagura". Specifically, she wanted to play the part of the festival's lead dancer, the "Utsuwa". It was just a tourist attraction sponsored by the Rougetsu Hall staff, so I allowed her to participate. For one hundred days exactly, she practiced the steps of the island's trademark dance, and at first I was happy for her.

On the eve of September 17, I was present along with my wife in an open-air theater to watch the performance. But when the six dancers stepped onto the circular stage, I realized that my daughter _wasn't_ among them. They were all wearing masks, but I could tell without having to see her face that something was wrong.

My wife stayed in the audience to watch the performance, but I left to search for my daughter. What had happened? Had she hurt herself at the last second and been replaced? If that was true, then she would probably be in Haibara Hospital, an establishment adjacent to the Rougetsu Hall. I ran there and asked the hospital director where she was, but he wouldn't tell me anything. By now, I was terrified, especially since my _sixth sense_ was flaring up, warning me of danger. It was the exact same feeling that I used to get on the night of the Crimson Sacrifice. At my wit's end, I drew a dagger and threatened to kill the man if he wouldn't tell me everything he knew. The director came clean and admitted that his entire hospital was a cover, designed to hide a shrine much like my own. It had been existing underneath my nose this whole time! According to the director, both his staff and those in the Rougetsu Hall were in on it. He also explained that the Rougetsu Kagura was a fake version of the shrine's ritual. The real version, known as the "Kiraigou", was performed in an underground chamber directly below the site of the fake dance.

Finally, the director told me that Tsuzuki's role in the dance had been changed at the last minute. She had been moved from performing in the fake ritual, to performing in the _real_ one.

As soon as the man told me where to find the path that led to the underground ritual, I ran there as fast as I could to find my daughter, but by the time I reached her, the dance was already half over. All I could do was watch the rest in silence, fearing that I would see my daughter killed.

She survived the dance without injury, thank gods. However, in the days following the dance, suicide rates on the island quadrupled, and both Tsuzuki and my wife became plagued by the rapid onset of a unique mental illness known as "Luna Sedata Syndrome", which tore away their memories and mental stability. Altogether, it was so bad that I had to wonder if this wasn't the island's own horrific version of the Repentance.

I couldn't be there for either of them when they needed me most, because I had been imprisoned in the very sanatorium that had previously sheltered me, awaiting a sentence for my crime of threatening the director's life. At first, the hospital believed me insane, but they eventually recognized my motive for threatening him as a normal one. The hospital director decided to show some leniency, but a restraining order filed against me still forbade me from ever returning to the hospital. I would never see my wife and child again.

That day, much like the day I had been banished from my own village, changed everything for me, and took away everything that I had left. A local family known as the Yomotsuki family offered to take me in, saving me the trouble of relocating for a second time. They were the ones who enabled the ritual to continue, and they felt terrible over what had happened to my family. I was welcome in their home for as long as I wanted to stay.

But I didn't want to stay. The incident had reawakened all my long lost fears and curiosities, and in the hole that my family had once filled, a hunger for knowledge now stirred in its place. These rituals and shrines that had taken everything away from me... but I still remembered their importance, why they had to exist in our world. They existed to ferry the souls of wicked, bitter, or otherwise hostile men and women safely away from the world. If those spirits stayed in our world, they would kill innocents, but these shrines **also killed innocents**, which caused quite an enigma for me. There had to be a way to make them safer and more durable, a way to prevent any "Repentance" from occurring ever again! I knew finding the answer to this problem would take years, decades of research. I would need to uncover secrets previously known only to the very first All Gods Ceremony Master. It would be nearly impossible, but I had no more personal ties to hold me back, so I could do it. I had to try...

I spent the remaining three decades of my life visiting every shrine in the world that I could find, reading the contents of their libraries, traveling for years at a time. Occasionally, I would return to Rougetsu Island and stay in the Yomotsuki house long enough to rest and organize my findings. Now, I am 75 years old and on my deathbed. As soon as I finish writing the rest of this passage, one of the Yomotsuki family has agreed to smuggle this book back into my old village. Sadly, the conclusions I reached in the end (which are summarized below) are not joyous or optimistic, but I was able to vindicate my decisions in life, and what I did find may still help you, **if** you allow it to. Below are the answers to the two greatest questions I faced in life:

1. Why did my village betray me?

2. Is there a theoretical way to defeat the Repentance permanently?

Each question was answered by my research, and connects to a characteristic of the world or its people that I found particularly important. From them, I discovered what problems **truly** plague our shrines, and what, if anything, we should do to counter them. Please, take this all to heart.

**II. The First Question**

I evacuated the village for its people's safety. That shouldn't have confused anyone, so why did my own priests overthrow me when I did?

The answer to this question wasn't hard to discover, and came to me naturally with a few years of wisdom. At first, I assumed that they were angry with me over what had happened prior to the evacuation. I had failed to save my elder daughter, Tsuzuru, from death, so maybe my failure had been unforgivable to them. But I was wrong; they _weren't_ acting out of any hatred for me. They were acting out of a _fear_ of something, something that I had unwittingly brought into their village when I decided to evacuate it. It is a basic fear, the oldest and most powerful ever to motivate human beings, and that's why I am so ashamed that I didn't realize this sooner. They were acting...out of fear of the **unknown**.

Are you confused? If so, then you shouldn't be. If you're from my village, then you are no doubt aware of the endless struggle between "Ceremony Masters" and "twins", the two most important parties in our ritual. The Ceremony Masters assert that the twins are foolish for not being willing to sacrifice their relationship to save the lives of others, while the twins say that the Ceremony Masters shouldn't be willing to use contemptible means to gain their results. They become so mired in the cycle of hatred for each other, that neither of them can see the conflict for what it really is: two sides, each with a different belief, but both loathing the other, because loathing is easier than trying to understand. Facing the unknown is what truly scares us in life. It terrifies us, and the refusal to face this fear is something that the Ceremony Masters and twins have in common.

This might all sound strange, but this is the human element that causes our shrines so much pain and unease. Sticking with what is familiar and maintaining the status quo is easy, but there are hidden dangers in doing it for too long. It's why most of the Ceremony Masters in our village's history were so stubborn, why the twins attempt escape so frequently, why the veiled priests are useless as advisers, and why they banished me when I did something that had never been done before. **Also**, it is the fear that enables the actions of the sinister entity that I discovered in my search to answer the next question...

**III. The Second Question**

Faced with immediate danger, I evacuated my village, but that was just a temporary solution, and I can't count on others thinking of it in the future. I wanted to know if there was a way to permanently erase any possibility of a Repentance occurring, but to do that, I needed to know more about it. In my village, no one actually knows what the Repentance really is, what causes it, and why. All they know is that it is fated to occur if sacrifices aren't regularly performed. To begin with, I'll explain what our village currently believes:

Up until I began my research, it was believed that the Hellish Abyss was little more than a giant, deep hole in the earth with one occupant resting at the bottom: the Malice. In case you're not well versed, the Malice is believed to be the combined energy and consciousness of the thousands of onryo (evil) spirits that were absorbed by our shrine. We all thought that the Malice would accept our sacrifices each decade, in return for freely agreeing to stay in the Hellish Abyss for that amount of time. Because of this cooperative nature that we believed it had, the Malice was revered as a god. It was also instrumental in our understanding of when the Repentance could occur; because the Malice _wanted_ our sacrifices, it would be reluctant to kill us all. Most other sects agree with this "Malice and Shrine" belief. Rougetsu, however, does not.

This island contributed more to my research than any other shrine. The Yomotsuki's taught me about the local beliefs, and they're much different from what I had traditionally thought to be true. In their eyes, the Malice didn't exist, and never had. Instead, they believed that their island was home to the **literal entrance to the underworld** (as in, the place where we _all_ go when we die).

It was a difference of opinion regarding what our shrines guarded, but in the end we were both only half right. I won't be going into detail here as to how my research led to this conclusion, but I found out that the shrines (all of them, including All Gods') guard both the Malice **and** the underworld. They were separate entities, not one and the same, as previously thought.

Taking our Hellish Abyss as an example, if you were to walk down it as if it were a road, the first thing you would see is the portion that houses the Malice. Shortly after this, the path on which you walked would meet up with _other_ paths, each one from a different shrine that housed its own "Malice". In total, there would be one small road for each shrine in the entire world that all combined at some point. Now walking along one huge "road", you would finally end your descent at the "gate to the underworld", which is said to be guarded by a kami or oni.

Many theories were shared with me as to who the gate's guardian is. The people of Rougetsu believe it to be Tsukuyomi, the shinto god of the moon. Others believe it is Amatsu, the god of evil and stars. Or it could be a demon unknown to man. I never found out for sure, but it's not an important detail anyway. The important thing I discovered is that this god is **the one that accepts our sacrifices**, and **not the Malice**. The Malice, instead, is analogous to a prisoner serving a life sentence behind bars, with the demon as its ruthless warden. Of course, the concurrent truth here is that the Malice really **wouldn't want our sacrifices**. If anything, it would **want them to fail**.

This whole discovery sheds greater light on why our sacrifice works the way it does. If our ritual is successful, it is known that one half of the soul of the sacrificed twin would return from the Hellish Abyss as a Crimson Butterfly that would protect our village. However, it was never known where the _other_ half would wind up. Now I know; more likely than not it would pass through the Malice and arrive at the bottom of the pit where the gate lies. The demon would consume the soul, becoming appeased. This was the price we paid, and in return it would **keep the Malice away from us** for another ten years.

When the Crimson Sacrifices in our village fails, it means that one of the twins couldn't fully accept their destiny. When that happens, the Malice takes advantage of the sacrificed twin's unsettled death by **grabbing onto her soul** when she tries to pass through (this makes sense, since the Malice thrives on people that couldn't accept their deaths). This would cause the soul to become part of the Malice before she can reach the demon at the bottom. Without a sacrifice, the demon would grow restless, thinking that the people above had refused to pay their toll. In response, it would weaken its grip on the Malice, which would compress itself beneath the surface of the world in a desire to escape its imprisonment, thus causing bad harvest and earthquakes. Finally, when left too long without payment, the demon would cut the offending shrine loose by setting their Malice free, dooming them to whatever they had named the resulting disaster. Calamity, Repentance, Unleashing, Day Without Suffering...they're really all the same exact thing in different locations.

Looking back, this all makes so much sense I'm embarrassed to admit I ever didn't know it. It aligns perfectly with my suspicion that the mourners had acted under the Malice's control when they killed my first daughter, and it explains many other failed sacrifices as well. In the end, the idea that the Malice felt anything other than hatred and vengeance for us was nothing but an empty illusion. It does not cooperate with us, it does not show mercy or compassion to us. It will try to trick and manipulate us, and turn us against each other. It will search for _any_ opportunity to escape, and when it does, it will kill us all. That's really all it wants: as many people dead as possible!

**IV: Conclusions**

I am sorry to disappoint you, and myself, with this woeful admission, and thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings in full detail. Sadly, my final recommendation for anyone who reads this is to flee the village and never look back. I wish that there was another way, but when you combine all these factors together, you should understand why all our shrines are on a one-way road to nowhere. Spirits have long memories, and the Malice won't stop until we are all dead. It doesn't even need to _try_ to pit us against each other; we did that _for it_ thanks to the "fear of the unknown" I mentioned earlier. It will scheme and try to sabotage the Crimson Sacrifice, and even if it doesn't, you know as well as I that a pair of twins will run away eventually. Something _will_ happen to make the Crimson Sacrifice impossible.

Now...what do you think will happen after that? Will the Ceremony Master really do what I did, or will he try to perform the sacrifice anyway? I think it's in his very nature to make the wrong choice, and when he does, this village will be your grave. Then you'll wish you'd been banished like I was.

Sincerely Yours,

Ryokogu Kurosawa

(xxxXXXxxx)

Everything went black for a moment before Ryokan found himself back in the Kureha Shrine, dazed and confused. He was still standing in front of the passage door, same as he had been before the vision.

_Do it...do it now...!_ The Malice was still in an uproar, but the old man was **done** taking its orders at this point. Instead, he simply took another deep breath, and reflected on what he had seen in the vision. The Malice didn't seem to know that it had even happened to him, but it _could_ sense the fire rapidly growing in his stomach as his understanding turned to fresh hatred.

_This anger, where is it coming from?_ The Malice asked, and Ryokan drew some strength from hearing it confused.

"I guess I owe Ryokogu my thanks," Ryokan murmured, triggering an irritable growl from the Malice.

_For what? What are you rambling about?_

"Well, he rejuvenated my strength somehow," Ryokan started, noting that he felt stronger and less tired than before. "But more importantly, he showed me the way. I know the truth now, and no man can walk out on the truth when it's shoved in front of him, not even me."

_What the hell does that mean!_ The Malice was outright furious now as it was beginning to suspect where this conversation was headed.

"It means that I finally know who tried to kill me with that fire, and I **definitely** know where my future lies now!"

Steeling himself, Ryokan lifted the camera back up, aimed it away from the door, and turned its lens toward _himself_.

xxXXxx

I hope everything in this chapter made sense to you guys. If not, then feel free to ask questions. The truth will continue to be revealed in the next chapter, and we'll see what becomes of Ryokan's revelation.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	27. Chapter 27: This is My Choice

Many thanks to Quill-and-Parchment and Fan of Games for reviewing the last chapter. To the former, I can only say that I'm proud that I don't write yaoi-intensive fiction. To the latter, don't worry if you can't review a story chapter right away. I'm always glad to receive feedback. :) Also, thanks for the story recommendation. I'll be sure to keep your story in mind for future reading.

It's been awhile since I last updated, but as promised, it's the end of May and the next chapter is ready. To recap, in the last one, it was implied that Ryokan is officially done putting up with the Malice's orders. This chapter picks up where that one left off, where we'll see what happens with this turn of events. Also, I just want to let you guys know that there's a point near the beginning of this story where the Malice's dialogue stops looking _like this_, and starts looking, "like this". It should be easy to tell when it's talking either way, but I wanted to point it out just in case. Hope you all enjoy the new chapter.

xxXXxx

Chapter 27: This is My Choice

Ryokan stood in front of the Kureha Shrine's passage door, bitter at the thought that he was now refusing to open it. He wanted to do it, wanted to use the golden film to break the seal on the door and run to his freedom, but he knew now that the camera's final roll of film had a more important use. So he stood silently, pointing the camera at his own face, watching its lens as it charged, and waiting for the Malice's reaction.

_Well now...this is interesting._

Astonishingly, when the Malice's voice echoed inside the old man's head, it didn't sound outraged, or insulted, or negative in any way beyond the usual sort of arrogance that it spoke with. In fact, the Malice's tone was light and entertained, as if someone had just told it a joke.

"My threat _amuses_ you?" he asked, feeling downright insulted, but also fortunate that he wouldn't have to endure the demon's anger.

_Of course, why wouldn't it? I've inhabited your body for the better part of a few weeks, and up until now you've trusted me as your ally. Now, you're threatening to excise me from your body, with your only means of escape! _

"More or less...that's correct," Ryokan exhaled deeply, trying to keep his temper under control. He knew the Malice probably wanted him to be angry. Its deep cackle of a laugh sounded out and rang in his ears.

_And to think I thought the days following the Repentance would be boring. What a confounding puzzle you are, old man._

The next thing he knew, Ryokan wasn't in the Kureha Shrine anymore. The passage door disappeared before his eyes, and the room changed as quickly as a balloon popping in a child's hand. Thrown off balance by surprise and shock, the old man took a fall to the floor, which was now hard as stone. He caught himself with his hands, which to his horror no longer held the camera! Where had it gone?

Frantic not to be caught off guard by his mortal enemy, the former Ceremony Master pushed himself up with a pained grunt, and surveyed the new room for signs of his missing weapon. It was large, and very different from the room he had been whisked away from. The floor on which he fell was built from stone tiles arranged in checkered patterns of black and red. The walls were covered with red velvet curtains and frames containing crudely drawn pictures of his former family and friends. Some also housed pictures of locations that he'd visited or lived in before, like All Gods village and the Kuze shrine. The ceiling, about 10 feet above him, was black and dotted with white and blue lights, like a clear night sky. All around him, wooden chairs, tables, and other furniture were scattered haphazardly. Many were tilted, some had sunken into the floor and walls, and a few were even suspended in midair.

The whole place had a fabled feeling to it, as if the old man were caught in the middle of a surrealist painting. There were no lamps or lights, yet half of the room was bright enough for him to see everything. The other half, which he stood facing, was obscured by a large, murky shadow. The room's walls were disordered and overlapped, sloped, and buckled in many places, which made it difficult for Ryokan to get a sense of perspective. In fact, to him, a man who's senses had suffered from his age, it was downright painful. Was the Malice trying to torment him with this illusory place, or was its appearance a coincidence? Either way, he closed his eyes tight and held his stomach, trying to resist the urge to vomit.

_Ryokan, I wonder...why would you do this?_

He heard the Malice's deep voice as it tried to continue their conversation from earlier, but it didn't sound like it was coming from inside him anymore. Instead, the voice came from within the black shadow in front of him. Unwilling to face the demon blind, Ryokan forced his eyes open and looked up. At once, he saw what he had just searched for: the Camera Obscura was lying on the ground about 20 feet in front of him, near where the room became dark. However, when he looked up further, he made out a dark figure emerging from the murk, just behind the camera. When it moved into full view, Ryokan gasped in shock.

"It" looked exactly like him. An exact copy of the Ceremony Master, with two differences. One, the doppelganger's kimono and court had were jet black, not light gray, as Ryokan's were. The other was the cruel, sadistic, almost rabid grin on its face. Immediately, the old man was suspicious of who this was.

"I told you...bringing Yae back, to make her perform the ritual with Sae's spirit, is the only way to end this curse I've placed over your village," the imitation spoke. "As the Ceremony Master, you were supposed to ensure that this ritual occurred. Now I'm giving you a chance to correct your mistake, and you respond with this insult. This insult, that conflicts with everything you once believed in. You, who once measured everything by gain."

"Are you...are you the Malice? Where are we?" Ryokan spoke with a nervous tremor in his voice. He focused his vision at the darkly attired figure to avoid looking at the rest of the dizzying room.

"Yes I am, old man, and _this_," the Malice replied enthusiastically, spreading its arms wide, "is the interior of your mind, my place of residence for the past few weeks. I like it in here: large, well-decorated, but also quite vacant. Fitting for a man like you."

Feeling dazed, Ryokan examined the disorganized mess again, despite not wanting to. _This_ was his mind?

"But as I was saying earlier," the Malice continued, "you're not the person I remember you being when I first possessed you. You've _changed_, old man. So tell me...why? I remember that certain people, particularly Yae and Itsuki, would often try to persuade you that the Crimson Sacrifice was morally wrong. Are you going to admit to me that you now believe _them_ to be correct?"

Gazing back at his mirror image once more, Ryokan took a deep breath and stabilized his worry. He would have to talk to the Malice until he got an opening to make a lunge for the camera, still resting at its feet and out of his reach. He was just lucky that the Malice was still staring intently at him, seemingly oblivious of the camera's presence.

"No, I'm not. Far from it, actually," Ryokan said. "Yae was a loving daughter, and Itsuki was like a friend to me, in his own annoying way. But both of them were idiots...idiots who could never see the bigger picture. However, _I_ was an idiot as well. I was too stubborn to see that I had options...choices I could've made when Yae ran away. I could've refused to sacrifice Sae alone, an attempt at the ritual that I _knew_ would fail. I could've evacuated the village, but chose not to. That was my crime...there was nothing wrong with the ritual when it had a chance of succeeding, but when the odds of its success turned against me I...I still didn't...I let everyone...," Ryokan stopped to stomach his feelings of shame. The Repentance had been largely his fault, and he felt terrible about it, but he couldn't afford to tear up in front of the Malice. Taking another breath, he continued. "To various extents, all Ceremony Masters are stupid in this way. The twins are stupid in _their_ own way. That's the real reason why Eichiro rebelled against our rule; I understand it now. He knew we needed better rulers than people like me and my father, knew how stubborn the _entire village_ was, and that it was doomed to die because of that stubbornness. The only ruler who ever exceeded these miserable expectations...was Ryokogu. He was the one who opened my eyes to all of this."

Suddenly, the eyes of the Malice's avatar went wide and glowed with rage. "Wait...did you say 'Ryokogu'?"

"Yes, I did. He wrote the book that you were so desperate to prevent me from reading. Do you remember him?" Ryokan asked, expectant of what the Malice would say in response.

"_Remember_ him?" it snarled. "For _centuries_, I dreamed of ripping his heart out of his body, of forcing his whore mother to watch him die! That inbred piece of roadkill made my existence miserable in his life. Of course he found one last way to inconvenience me now, even as his corpse festers in the grave."

Well that was definitely something more along the lines of what the old man would expect to hear from something called "the Malice". It must've _really_ hated that Ceremony Master. A few moments of tense silence passed before Ryokan mustered an answer, though he chose not to comment on the Malice's slander.

"I experienced a vision that narrated the contents of the book to me. In it, he spoke of what he called 'the endless cycle of hatred between Ceremony Masters and twins'. He also professed his desire to see that cycle end. Though I couldn't stop the cycle before it led to the village's destruction, it's Ryokogu's wishes that are alive in me now, when I tell you that I will not side with the other Ceremony Masters, _or_ the twins, any longer. From now on, I'll make my own choices, and take responsibility for them."

The Malice placed a hand under its chin and knitted its brows in thought. "So, what you're telling me is that you'd turn your back on the beliefs of your own family, both the twins _and_ the Ceremony Masters? That's _cold_, Ryokan, even for you."

The old man just scowled in response. "Maybe, but it's what has to be done. I just wish I'd done it sooner."

"Touching, but you weren't wasting my time with this diatribe just to tell me that. What else did you discover?" the Malice growled. Ryokan narrowed his eyes at the lookalike figure standing before him. It seemed like it was trying to get information out of him, but there was no harm in letting what he'd learned out into the open now.

"I discovered _you_," Ryokan replied in an accusative tone. "The _true_ you, not this false 'ally' that you pretend to be when you talk to me. You've been playing me, _using_ me, ever since you possessed me when I returned to the village weeks ago. By augmenting my stubbornness and ignorance, you wanted me to create a situation where I would cause the village's rituals to fail, and the Repentance to occur."

The Malice didn't look surprised or insulted to be hearing any of this. To Ryokan, that was just further proof that what he was saying, was indeed correct.

"You never wanted to help me, and you never intended to keep your promise to free the souls of the villagers," he continued. "You merely wanted me to help you complete your true goal: revenge against the village and its people. We all share the blame for what happened. You, for trying to make it happen, me, for being too stubborn and ignorant to stop any of it, and Yae, for running away. Now no more lies, Malice: come clean!"

A long pause followed Ryokan's angry words. While the Malice contemplated its own response, a loud humming noise from the camera signaled that it was fully charged. It had been resting at the Malice's feet facing in its direction all this time, yet the demon's incarnation hadn't bothered to even move out of the way, let alone try something more obvious, like break it. Why? Maybe the Malice couldn't touch the camera? Maybe the Malice needed the camera for something, but if so, what? Or maybe the whole thing was just a trick of some sort. Ryokan kept looking around the room suspiciously, half expecting some other incorporeal assailant to appear out of the shadows. Meanwhile, the Malice grinned and shrugged its shoulders in a humbled gesture.

"Fine, Ryokan," it said, smiling devilishly. "You told me your story; it's only fair that I tell you mine. The story starts with my creation. My body was created from thousands of unsettled souls who were wronged in life and denied justice, and my mind was sired from their desire for revenge. But the souls that form my body were all trapped in the Hellish Abyss before they could have the revenge that they so deserved. Left in the darkness with our nightmares, we waited thousands of years for your villagers to get careless and release us from our prison. The Repentance was to be your reward for our pain, and it should've come long ago, when my plan to possess a mourner and kill Ryokogu's daughter succeeded. In fact, I once tried the same plan with your own father."

Ryokan clenched his fists angrily. So, the Malice _had_ been behind the mourner's attempt to kill him as a child! How many other times in history had it tried something like this?

"But Ryokogu foiled your plot with his evacuation, didn't he?" he asked, delighting in reminding the Malice that it's old plan hadn't worked. The mention of Ryokogu's name only made the Malice angry again.

"Yes, he did!" it snapped. "I _could_ have escaped the Hellish Abyss that night, but a victimless Repentance seemed worthless. So I waited centuries more. Finally, a string of failed sacrifices created the situation you found yourself in, but I needed some assurance that you wouldn't do what Ryokogu did."

"So you possessed me and corrupted my will?" the old man shouted, at last unable to control his fury. He may have made some changes to his philosophy in the past few days, but his short temper was still very much alive.

"Now now hold on," the demon's tone was snide once more, "you _are_ correct, but the blame is hardly mine to shoulder alone. I don't recall _forcing_ you to sacrifice Sae; that choice was yours. Like you said, you were plenty foolish without my help; all I really had to do was inspire the right dark thoughts, at the right times. Making you think you couldn't trust your own family, and that the sacrifice was your only hope. Tricking you into leaving Chitose in her closet, just in time for Sae to come along and strange the life out of her! _Trying_ to convince you to leave the village and return with Yae, just so I can watch her die as well! You helped me do all of it, old man! You and I acted together!"

By now, Ryokan was livid, but instead of cursing some more, he tried converting his anger into some emotion that would be more productive. He settled on what he was already throwing at the Malice by the ton: insolence.

"Maybe so," he replied, "but now that I know the truth, I can try to put things right. At the very least, I can, and _will_, refuse to open the passage door."

"You mean that one?" the Malice replied playfully. At first Ryokan had no clue what it was talking about, but then he noticed that the demon wasn't looking at _him_ anymore. It was looking at something _directly behind him. _Startled at the realization, the old man turned his head as quickly as his stiff neck could manage. Half expecting to be attacked by something, he instead saw that a door had materialized in the wall. It looked exactly like the Kureha Shrine passage door, right down to the blue, translucent seal plastered onto the front of it. While Ryokan eyed the door in shock, his black-robed equivalent simply watched. Its smile melted into a frown.

"Your words are all very touching," it said, with malevolence pervading its speech, "but you need to remember what you're up against, fool. I have existed for thousands of years, and I will endure for the rest of eternity. You are an old man in his sixties, on the verge of death even then. I know all there is to know about you, while you fumble in the dark. I created this village of horrors that you now find yourself in. Your weak, mortal body is bruised, starved, and on the verge of malfunction. Ryokan, when you talk about defying a power as great as mine, it's not a question of 'putting things right', it's a question of staying alive. Unfortunately, unless you do what I say and open the door, that question isn't going to have a pleasant outcome."

With that being said, the Malice looked down at the Camera Obscura for the first time since the start of the conversation, and kicked it in Ryokan's direction. It slid along the twenty feet that separated the two of them. The second it got to Ryokan, he scooped it up in a haste and examined it carefully. It didn't seem to be broken.

"So _this_ was the Malice's endgame," Ryokan thought warily, turning again to look at the door behind him. "It still wants me to free myself from the village, even though it knows that I won't agree to bring Yae back." He turned to look at the Malice again, who was still standing in the shadows and waiting patiently. "What are you planning?"

"If you're really determined to continue on this path, then at least give me the satisfaction of knowing that you have a plan," the Malice broke Ryokan's train of thought with its words. The latter shrugged and decided to be honest.

"No, not really," he said. "I'm going to search the village for more film and a new plan to break your curse. That's it."

At once, the Malice shook the room with a bellowing laugh so loud, that a nearby floating mirror cracked and ejected glass onto the floor.

"Search fast then, fool," the demon said with another laugh, before calming down and resuming its dark demeanor, "because you won't survive for long. Again, your new-found resolution is charming, but ultimately meaningless, just like this entertaining conversation. You _are_ going to do what I say."

Ryokan glared at the Malice, staring it down.

"Do it!" the Malice snapped, pointing a finger at the door. "Refusing to save your own life isn't going to help anything. You've already allowed me to kill almost everyone; my plan is very nearly complete. Yae escaped, but while it depresses me to think that I won't get to see her die, I have the pleasure of knowing that the Himuro Mansion curse will do my work for me, in time. That leaves _you_, Ryokan. The only person you can help is yourself, so go ahead...open the door."

Ryokan turned the camera in his hands, thinking about the Malice's words, when something confusing dawned on him. "Wait a minute, if all this is true, why not kill me now? You obviously can since you're inside me, but instead here you are, trying to convince me to open that damn door. Hell, you even tried to kill me earlier, with that fire in the Tsuchihara house. I know that was you."

The Malice took a few steps toward the old man, pushing a suspended chair out of the way as it walked. Both the demon and Ryokan were tired of talking.

"Once you started trusting Itsuki and doubting me," it said irritably, "I thought you'd be better off dead. But when you impressed me by outrunning that fire at _your_ age, I decided to give you one more chance. This _is_ that chance, now I'll ask you again. Even left alone, I estimate you have a day, at most, before this village kills you, so are you going to stay and die, or leave and live? What'll it be?"

Again the room fell silent as Ryokan considered the Malice's words. There was no way he was going to work for it anymore, but one thing still bothered him: was there _any_ hope that the curse could be lifted without the demon's consent? He knew that he couldn't _force_ the Malice out of the village, because it had spread too far. It _was_ the village now: every house, every road, every tree. Ryokan's camera could only exorcise spirits if they were concentrated in a certain location. Otherwise, it would be like trying to move an entire beach one grain of sand at a time. He could banish _this_ part of the Malice from his body, if he chose to, but there was no way to take pictures of everything.

He couldn't _appease_ the demon either, since it was now clear that it couldn't be appeased. It was insatiable and would keep trying to spread until the entire world was shrouded in darkness. In fact, maybe that was why it wanted him to open the door.

What would the Malice do if Ryokan refused this last command? The old man knew that, once it was no longer inside him, the demon would try whatever it could to add him to the other Repentance victims. Surviving rare attacks from Sae and the Kusabi had been almost impossible; now they might attack constantly! It's not like they wouldn't be able to find him, since there was no way to hide from a demon that was literally everywhere.

Actually, probably not. It crossed the old man's mind that the Malice hadn't been able to reign in either of them before, so it probably wouldn't be able to control them now. Or maybe it really could, and had sent them after him earlier, to motivate him. Rubbing his sore head irritably with a free hand, Ryokan tried to focus his thoughts. It didn't matter if other spirits came after him, since the village itself was draining his strength. One day to search for a cure, or at least some more film. Could he pull it off? Should he even try?

Sighing wearily, the old man sat in a nearby chair to alleviate the building pain in his knees. "Whatever I do here," he thought, "I'll be committed to for the rest of my life. For better or worse." Impatiently the Malice tapped its foot on the floor, creating a sound like the ticking of a grandfather clock in the otherwise silent room. Looking up, Ryokan admired the pictures on the walls. An especially beautiful one of Yae hung above him, staring down with a compassionate smile. He knew what she would do in this situation. Or maybe he didn't. The old man would never forgive himself for not knowing his own daughter better. If he had, maybe no one would be in this situation now. Least of all, her and her dear sister, Sae.

His mind now made up, Ryokan rose from his seat and lifted the camera. The smile on the demon's face widened...

...but not for long.

"Does _this_ answer your question?" the old man roared defiantly, aiming the camera straight at the demon's face. The Malice's avatar only had enough time to widen its eyes and mouth in terror before a blast of radiant light tore it to pieces. For a moment, it swallowed Ryokan's senses whole. When it faded, he was shocked to see that he was once again in the Kureha Shrine, still in front of the sealed passage door, and still holding the camera.

Above and in front of him, a thick, black fog wafted out of the old man's chest and drifted away like smoke from a fire. It had the vague shape of a human's upper body, two sharp, red eyes, and a mouth with serrated teeth. When Ryokan looked down at the camera in his hands and noticed that the golden film was no longer there, it became clear to him that his choice to banish the Malice from his mind had carried over to his real world body. Through it's "mouth", the demon offered one final threat:

"Enjoy your freedom while it lasts, old man. No matter what you try to do, you've reached the end of your journey. You've made your final stand. It's _my_ world now."

With that, the dark fog dissolved into the air until it was no longer visible, or audible, for that matter. Though fatigued and fearful for what would happen next, right now the old man was just satisfied to be free. For the first time in weeks, his thoughts were purely _his_ business. No prying eyes, or voice nagging at his every action. Just the thought of it was drive enough for the old man to haul himself to the shrine door and open it. Nothing that he could see had changed outside. No mobs of spirits sent by the Malice to kill him, no poisons evident in the air, no darker or lighter that it had been before. Satisfied that he wasn't in immediate danger, Ryokan forced himself to close the gap between the Kureha Shrine and the stairs leading back to the village. Looking on at All Gods below, the old man pondered the vast oblivion that he knew lay before him.

"One more day, huh?" he thought curiously. "Well, I guess it's an important day for me, then..."

Ryokan descended the Kureha Shrine steps in silence, his mind completely made up. Even if he _did_ find more film for the camera, he would not leave until he had found some other way to break the village's curse. His actions had caused enough pain, and no one else would suffer, not while he had strength left. He knew that he would probably die trying, but the thought of death didn't bother him as much anymore. He simply accepted it, or tried to, anyway. Right now, all that mattered was the fact that Ryokan's spirit and mind were once again his.

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There's Chapter 27. Although the whole thing was one huge conversation between Ryokan and the Malice, I'm glad with the way it turned out. This chapter was meant to be the game-changer in terms of plot, especially since this is the first time Ryokan's been "free" since Chapter 13. I hope you all enjoyed, and thanks for reading. Be sure to let me know if you have questions about something.

By the way, just to give you all a preview for what's coming up, the next chapter is titled "Mio's Fate". Yes, Mio, the girl we played as in Fatal Frame 2. She's in this, more so then she already has been. That chapter will be up in two or three weeks.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	28. Chapter 28: Mio's Fate, Part 1

Thanks to Fan of Games for reviewing the last chapter. I really appreciate your interest and support. To answer your question about how you'll know when the end of this story comes: thanks for your suggestion, but I already have a plan for how I'll let everyone know when we're nearing the end. In the chapter before the last one, I'll post an author note letting you all know that the next chapter is the last one. That way I won't have to post a big spoiler about the total number of chapters, but at the same time you'll have an idea of when we've reached the finale.

The new chapter is turning out too long to post all at once, so I'm splitting it into two parts.

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Chapter 28: Mio's Fate, Part 1

Grunting and panting from strain and fatigue, the old man propelled himself down the Kureha Shrine's steps as a foul wind kicked up around him. While the village was thankfully no more hostile than it had been before, both it and the old man's aging body were causing him more severe pain with every inch of ground he moved. Knowing that this was the worst possible time to rest did nothing to bring him more energy. He needed to stop and regain his strength so badly, that even the Tachibana house seemed too far away. Instead, the old man turned right at a fork in the steep road and walked along a short, inclined path that ended at the location of the massive oak tree, now twisted and gray from centuries of age, that the deceased remaining called their resting place. Their tombstones were kept safe from nature's wrath inside a large hollow at the base of the tree.

A deep, worried sigh escaped the old man's lips. It was considered disrespectful, even sacrilegious to enter the tree's hollow when not paying proper respects to those enshrined within, but this was urgent. It would be warm and secluded from danger inside, at least more so than elsewhere. Shrugging off his final doubts, the old man stepped up to the oak shrine's entrance.

Getting inside proved to be a struggle. At his age and size, Ryokan was barely limber enough to fit through the small gap between tree roots, but the interior of the old oak was well worth it. The small cave was warm and moist, lit with several stone lanterns that still burned brightly. Hundreds of red pinwheels were perched amid the gravestones, none of them spinning thanks to the lack of wind inside the shrine. Altogether the tree's soft ground felt safe and comfortable, as Ryokan had hoped it would. It was as if the Repentance hadn't touched it at all. The secret grave site still felt as sacred as it had on the day that Ryokan had mourned the death of his own father, Sengoku, inside it...

For a moment, the old man lifted his head up and held his breath. Still worried for his safety, he listened intently to his surroundings to make sure that nothing had followed him to the tree. No sound came but the whistle of the wind outside. Once he was confident of his ability to rest in peace, Ryokan lied down on the soft dirt, using an old pillow meant for kneeling as his head rest. Despite his worries of what would happen to him when he woke up, exhaustion won. Within minutes, he was asleep.

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_Mayu..._

_...where are you...?_

_Mayu!_

"Mayu..." Ryokan murmured, drooling on the pillow as he slept on his side, "where are you?"

Suddenly, the old man was jolted awake with such force that he flung himself straight up. "Mayu!" he shouted. His loud call echoed along the wooden walls of the tree's underbelly and traveled back to his ears, loud and clear. The sound of the name he was calling confused him. "Mayu?" he said blearily, licking his lips and flinching as if something disgusting had entered his mouth. "Who is...Mayu?"

Ryokan had suffered another strange "dream" while he slept, oddly similar to the one that he had experienced on the last night before the Repentance. Like that one, he had seen a strange girl wandering his village, and he had followed her. Unfortunately, the dream had also ended in the same way that the last one did. The girl had aimed at him with the Camera Obscura and fired a blast of agonizing light. Rubbing his now sore head irritably, the old man only prayed that his throbbing headaches would go away soon.

Troubling as it was, Ryokan had no time to worry about why he kept seeing the strange girl, or what she wanted. There were more important things he needed to worry about. He didn't know how long he had been asleep, and to be frank, the old man had worried that he wouldn't wake up at all. It had been days since he found nourishment, and he had the fate of an entire village to worry about now. Yes, he was still safe for the moment, but it couldn't last forever. He needed to start working on his countermeasure against the Malice. Against evil itself...

"But how?" he pondered, a hand scratching under his chin. The rusty wheels in his head turned slowly, but brought him no answers. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem for him. The former Master would simply head to his study and do some reading. After all, his house contained thousands of years of knowledge, written down and cataloged meticulously. Inside it, a solution to ending the Malice's curse probably existed somewhere. The problem was that he simply didn't have the time to search for it. Ryokan's chances of surviving long enough to do any good were slipping fast; he couldn't afford to spend an eternity reading while the village's vengeful spirits closed in on him. Whatever plan he formed would have to come straight from his own head.

But the old man was mentally spent, and lost to what he could possibly do to fight the Malice. What had always been taught not just in his village, but _all_ of Japanese culture, was that there were only two ways to banish a demon: appease it, or exorcise it. Ryokan didn't know how to do either now that the Malice had revealed its true agenda, so his "plan" would likely be far from what sounded sensible.

On top of that, Ryokan also had to search for more film for the camera, his only defense against another assailant. He had to do that while thinking up some miraculous solution, and he had to do it all before he starved to death...or got caught by Sae.

"Good thing I love challenges," the old man grumbled. "Maybe the solution isn't as complicated as it seems. Think, Ryokan...what have you noticed since the Repentance started? Has the Malice given _any_ clues to a possible weakness?"

One moment more than any other came to his mind. It had happened just after the Repentance, when he had come up with his former plan to bring Yae back to the village. He had tried to use the Kureha Shrine to follow her, but the door had been sealed. More specifically, he remembered that the Malice had been unable to break the seal on the door, forcing him to find a way himself instead. Also, Sae and the Kusabi had attacked him at least twice, but the Malice hadn't called them off. It was almost as if the demon couldn't control its own curse. Why was that?

Before Ryokan could think any further, a noise that came from outside the tree drew his attention. It was a soft, gentile noise – the sound of small feet patting against the ground. When the temperature in the old man's shelter didn't drop at all, he concluded that the noise probably came from something that wouldn't try to hurt him. Curious now since he hadn't heard many noises like that since the Repentance, Ryokan edged slowly and cautiously out of the tree and into the open night, clutching his camera close even though it couldn't protect him this time. Fortunately, his theory was proven correct when he saw the source of the noise. It wasn't a spirit, though it was something, or rather someone, that Ryokan dreaded seeing again.

From the girl's alien but familiar dressing attire, the old man initially concluded her to be the girl that he kept envisioning. However, he then mustered the courage to get a closer look. He walked along the short path to "meet" the girl at the fork in the road. When he saw her up close, as she hobbled past him seemingly without a worldly care, he noticed a difference from his other visions.

Her footsteps weren't in proper sync. When he had seen the other girl wandering around in his visions, she had walked like any normal person would if they were in a hurry. This girl, however, was limping. Her left leg worked strenuously to provide needed support to a right leg that Ryokan could tell had been crippled at some point. Actually, the nature of the injury reminded him of...Sae's.

"That makes _two_ uncanny lookalike outsiders," Ryokan muttered to himself. The girl payed no attention to him. As if in a trance, she staggered right past, following some crimson butterflies that led her along like a jilted lover. She slowly disappeared into the depths of All Gods village, but not before Ryokan gave chase. Fearfully reminded of what had happened to him in the other visions, Ryokan tailed her at a distance, just to be safe.

He didn't even fully understand why he was doing it. It was just that, at the moment he saw her, Ryokan had remembered how strange and impossible it was that he was seeing these girls in his visions to begin with. Though it was more secluded than the rest of the world, plenty of people had passed through the village throughout history and time, so why did he keep seeing these specific two in his dreams, and now in real life? That other girl had even appeared _before_ the Repentance turned Ryokan's village into a haunted house, so it couldn't all be just a trick. Stranger still, these girls looked _exactly_ like Yae and Sae (minus the clothing), right down to the specific leg injury that Sae had suffered before her sacrifice. Plus, the other one had carried the Camera Obscura, the exact same device that Ryokan was carrying now. There was no way that this was all just a coincidence. More like...more like _providence_...a premonition of sorts. The girls were linked to Ryokan's own children, somehow, and he was seeing them for a reason. In fact, as Ryokan thought about it, he slowly realized with horror:

What if they were here to warn him that he would fail?

Ryokan could tell from the girl's strange attire that they were probably from some time yet to pass. Plus, they were wandering his village, and their terrified and entranced looks told him that the village's hostile spirits were doing something to hurt them. So they were trapped in his village's curse at some point in the future, probably after Ryokan had died. Did all of this mean that his efforts to destroy the curse were doomed to fail from the start, just because destiny had decided so? That was the ominous thought that led to Ryokan's creeping fear whenever he saw them, but the old man swallowed it as best he could.

"No," he said defiantly, "I promised that I would lift this village's curse, or give my life trying. I'm going to keep that promise, even if I shouldn't. I already have a head start: I know that the Malice has a weakness. Maybe now I just need some inspiration. Maybe the outsiders can give it to me. Maybe _that's_ why they're here: to help me finish what I started, for better or worse."

Continuing to stalk the girl's movements was easy. Her impaired steps were slow and clumsy, making it easy to follow them from a distance. The only further problem was that Ryokan would have to abandon his search for film. He knew that was a deadly risk, but the old man couldn't wander off now, when he at least felt close to the plan that he needed. He would search for film later, but leaving now would run the risk of the "outsiders" not appearing again, and he couldn't have that. While he knew where one of them was, he would follow her every move, in the hopes that her actions could tell him something he didn't already know.

Within moments, following the girl brought him to the Kurosawa house.

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While the strange girl led Ryokan through the rotting halls of his former home, the latter got around to thinking. If this girl wasn't the one that he had seen in his other visions, then she must be her sister, the one she was risking her life in the village to find. Mayu, he remembered the name being. It was a sensible conclusion to reach, but what he didn't understand was why they were wandering even further into the village when any sensible person would've turned and run by now. In fact, judging from the glazed expression on the girl's face, Ryokan had to wonder if she was even aware of her actions at all.

When the two of them entered the great hall, the girl shuffled straight to the center of the room and waited there, standing on top of a pile of bodies. Suddenly fearful of what the girl might do next, Ryokan moved past her quickly and waited in the doorway that they had yet to pass through. It was the door that led to the courtyard staircase. From there, the only place to go was up the stairs and to the guest floor.

"That settles it, something is very wrong with this girl," the old man could only stutter his words since fear was creeping up his spine and causing him to tremble, or maybe that was just the icy wind nipping at the back of his neck. Question was...what exactly was causing her to act this way? Momentarily he considered the possibility that this girl might simply be insane, but it seemed more likely that someone, or something, was pulling the strings on her every move. Why else would she be standing in the _exact_ same place that Sae had spent so much time, on the night of the Repentance?

Ten minutes passed in silence, with the girl doing nothing but standing aimlessly, observing the grisly decaying process with a vacant smile on her face. When she finally stepped down and walked toward the door where he stood, Ryokan moved aside to allow her to pass. When she began her ascent up the stairs, he followed her, no longer bothering to use stealth. It didn't matter what distance he tracked her from. "Mayu", long since possessed by some foul spiritual delusion, was dead to his presence.

The hallway leading to the guest room was dark and stained with blood, but Ryokan counted his blessings when nothing emerged from the shadows to attack him. Sadly, the old man was already growing tired from their walk across the village, but it had a calming effect on him as he didn't have the energy to worry about himself.

Mayu walked through the disheveled guest room without faint, stepping _through_ toppled furniture and bodies as if they weren't there. Following silently, Ryokan felt a pang of guilt for Seijiro Makabe, who had been seized by the priests here and imprisoned wrongly. Standing still for a moment, he closed his eyes and said a short prayer for the man that had saved his life without even knowing it. Oh well...at least he had enjoyed his death. Against all common sense, the folklorist had been _happy_ to see the Hellish Abyss with his own eyes. He had thanked the former Ceremony Master for the opportunity before he died, even as his body bled to death. And Ryokan...all he had been able to do in return was bow his head and say "you're welcome".

Now that brave man was the Kusabi. Bravery turned to raw anger, he was bent on revenge against the man that had killed him, and bound to get it soon if Ryokan didn't hurry. When he opened his eyes to see where Mayu would go next, he saw her shadow disappear behind a hidden door in the wall. He knew where it led.

"This place," Ryokan mumbled to himself. He passed through a blood-soaked room with nothing but one flickering light and a large wooden box, before emerging out of it on the other side. The room he found himself in had been Kiyomi's "personal space", which she used to display her doll collection on an ornate stand.

"Dolls..._dolls_," Ryokan shook his head and chuckled to himself. He had never gotten over the fact that his wife collected these things. She kept them in here to stop him from trying to "accidentally" throw them away. But getting back to more important matters, Ryokan turned away from the stand and saw Mayu tottering around nearby. As soon as she had reached the room's far end, she stood behind a small folding screen and...collapsed there, without so much as a sound. Both confused and concerned, the old man moved over to her and kneeled down. The girl had fallen with her eyes open and wasn't moving. Dead, maybe? No...upon closer inspection, he could see the girl's breath condensing in front of her face. She was alive, but it didn't look like she had plans to move any time soon.

Sighing impatiently, Ryokan simply sat in the corner of the room for awhile. His milky eyes alternated between watching her and the door they had entered through, hoping that one would stir soon. For a moment he considered resting some more, but he didn't want to risk falling asleep and being attacked, or having the girl wander off while he was unaware.

By the time an hour had passed, the silence was becoming unbearable. It hung over the room, pounded on Ryokan's ears, and played tricks on his mind. The old man could swear hearing a different whispering voice from every corner of the room. Each gust of wind howling outside the house, every creak of the walls and floor, sounded unique to him. Any one could be the noises of a demon ushered forth to end his life. Even the dolls; he could imagine them springing to life and cackling wildly.

Worse, the long stretch of unused time left Ryokan alone with his thoughts. Thoughts of all the horrible things that had happened in the village, under his watch. Every passing moment left anguish in his heart and anger in his eyes. Unable to continue coping with the strain it had been enduring for days now, his body began to tremble violently as the walls melted around him. "No...this can't happen, not now," Ryokan begged his mind to cooperate with him. His vision began to blur.

_Babysitting a child. Is this really the best use of your final hours alive?_

Dread choked him when he heard the low, almost bestial voice that he had come to loathe intently. That sounded like the Malice speaking to him.

_Come on, old man, there's no more point in wasting time like this and you know it. Do the smart thing. Take your own life before something else does!_

Ryokan didn't listen to it; he shut his eyes tight and tried to block out the maddening sound in a vain attempt to maintain his composure. Was the hellish village just tearing away his sanity, or had the Malice found a way back into his mind somehow? God forbid, maybe they were actually Ryokan's _own_ dark thoughts, that he simply didn't want to take credit for. Either way, the old man covered his head with his hands, grasping his gray hair tightly with his fingers. Fortunately, before the breakdown could manifest itself further, it was interrupted by an unusual sight that caught the old man's attention. Underneath the door across from him, he could see a shape moving against the glow of some flashes of bright light. Grateful, almost manic for the tension to be relieved by what looked like the arrival of Mayu's sister, Ryokan got up and moved to the door to greet her. His happiness, however, changed to apprehension when the door swung open. Mayu's sister stood before him, and she wore a look of horror on her face. That was when he realized his mistake.

He had forgotten to keep his distance from her.

"Oh no, please...not that again..." Ryokan backed up in a futile effort to stay her hand, but it was no use. The panicked girl raised the camera and fired a dizzying beam at his eyes. This was the third time it had happened to him, but there was no getting used to being blinded. Spiraling to make sense of his surroundings, Ryokan stumbled and tripped over the hem of his kimono. Falling backward, the hard, unforgiving frame of Kiyomi's doll stand struck the back of his head with such force that he barely had time to hear the cracking sound it made. By the time he had collapsed to the floor, the world around him had gone black.

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So Ryokan has his new plan. Just as Mio got help in Fatal Frame 2 by listening to people from the past, Ryokan is getting help (or trying to) by listening to people in the future. Too bad he got knocked unconscious at the end of the chapter. Plus, after a few days in the cursed village, he's finally starting to lose his mind. We'll see how long he can last in the following chapters, the next of which will be up in about a week.

Reviews will be appreciated.


	29. Chapter 29: Mio's Fate, Part 2

Thanks to Fan of Games for reviewing the last chapter. Don't worry about the possibility of your predictions causing spoilers. Readers are always free to speculate on what will happen next. I enjoyed reading your theory. We'll find out if you were correct in a couple of chapters.

This chapter is another long one, and it's a bit different from the other chapters in this story. You'll see why as you read on. I hope you all enjoy. :)

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Chapter 29: Mio's Fate, Part 2

A few minutes before he "woke up", Ryokan could hear the sound of his own deep, labored breathing. In...out...in...out. He concentrated on that sound, grasping onto it as proof that he wasn't finished just yet. He was alive, and the bout of madness he had just suffered had subsided.

Or so he thought.

Ryokan had woken up on his side, his head strangely relaxed given that he had hit it and knocked himself unconscious. When his fuzzy vision of the surroundings finally cleared, he noticed almost immediately that it didn't match the appearance of the room that he had blacked out in. The more his vision adjusted, the more out of place things seemed. Hoping to make sense of where he was, the old man hauled himself upright for a better view. It was an indoor setting – a tatami room, absent of furniture save for a few decorative antiques and some sitting cushions. It was familiar to him as the row of tatami rooms located on the upper floor of the Tachibana house, but the realization did little to settle his worries. Even moving past the fact that he definitely hadn't been here when he lost consciousness, something just didn't seem right. The room was completely lacking any color, as if it existed in some realm where shades of gray were all that existed. The texture of each and every sight, including his own body, was grainy and unfocused. The room didn't seem to have a sense of temperature or smell, as if it were nothing but a projection. The air was thick and weighed on his lungs.

Perhaps worst of all, Ryokan couldn't find the Camera Obscura anywhere. It was missing – again.

Struggling not to let the disorientation get the best of him, Ryokan relaxed where he sat for a few moments and took deep breaths, feeling as if each one could drive out another unwelcome thought. His head was once again clear and calm, as much as possible given his current situation, but how long did he have before he panicked again? His grip on reality was starting to slip, and he had to hurry his plans up before it got worse.

_The ritual...was a failure._

To make matters worse, Sae's voice sounded in the distance, prompting Ryokan's heart to beat more quickly.

_The Repentance...has come and gone._

"How much longer can I keep this up?" the old man mumbled with a hint of worry on his tongue. Fortunately, she sounded far off, and he was able to keep a reign on his stoic accord for the moment.

_Everyone is...dead._

_It's because we ran away. Now...I'm here...waiting...for it to end..._

...still, all the more reason to hurry before she came closer.

"Right, time to figure out...just where the hell I am," Ryokan muttered the last part under his breath. He couldn't help but laugh at the fact that surliness seemed to be his source of strength.

_But first...my sister needs to return as well._

It took a few more seconds of calming down and gathering strength for him to finally get up on his feet. Though it really didn't do him much good; trying the three doors in the faded tatami room revealed that only one of them was unlocked. It led to another, different tatami room. Worried that he wouldn't make enough progress to get away from Sae at this rate, the old man quickened his pace and pulled open another door at the opposite end of the room.

_Yae...come back to me._

_Come back now._

It led to yet a third room. It wasn't much different than the other two, the only new feature being a closet embedded in the wall to his left.

_How long...do you expect us all to wait?_

_**Yae!**_

Now Ryokan's worry became a no holds barred panic as Sae's growing voice escalated into a crescendo of earsplitting laughter that flooded the room. She was coming for him, she was getting closer and he needed to run or hide now! Willing his legs to unfreeze themselves and work, the old man was halfway to the next door when he stopped. He had remembered, thankfully just in time, that he had no idea where Sae was coming from, or if she was even on the same floor as him. The laughter seemed to pour down from the ceiling and he couldn't locate its source. If he rushed through one of the tatami room's two doors blindly, he could wind up running straight into her. She would kill him before he even had a chance to blink, much less turn to run the other way.

"The closet," the old man gasped. It was his best chance. The girl's malicious laughter chased after him as he dove into the closet and slid the door closed as quietly as he could manage. The confined hiding place brought the old man no relief and his panicking mind begged him to hide himself even further. No use; the closet was almost too small for him to fit in and offered no further protection. Other than him, it contained nothing but a laundry bin and a small shelf with a rusty key sitting on it.

_When I find you..._

He didn't draw a single breath as he waited. Ryokan sunk into the tatami floor, as if that would actually make him harder to see. Shuffling footsteps sounded out in the distance, their intensity growing at a pace that spoke of their source's speed. Had the gears of his mind not been frozen over with fear, the old man might've wondered why a spirit with no feet would make such sounds, but it didn't matter to him now. Nothing did. His plan had failed; Sae would find him here and kill him.

"This is it. This...this is where I die," Ryokan tried to accept his fate, though he certainly didn't want to. Shadows flickered underneath the door as something approached, and the door shook as it fumbled for the handle. Closing his eyes, Ryokan prayed that the finishing blow would be quick.

The closet door flew open without hesitation, and Ryokan flinched as something hurled itself inside with him. His muscles relaxed a little when they didn't feel any icy chill. Baffled, Ryokan unfurled himself and slowly opened his eyes to see who his "guest" was. A normal, flesh and blood girl now shared his hiding place. Doing as he had done moments earlier, the girl slid the door shut just as a crest of white light appeared outside.

Ryokan looked down in shock, and fought to make sense of what was happening. The girl had walked into the closet, and both of her black-stockinged legs extended _through_ his stomach and down to the ground where she stood. It didn't cause him any pain; her flesh and clothing were nothing more than shadows to him.

"A vision," Ryokan felt a weight pulled off of his chest. Relaxing, he cleansed his lungs with a large breath, "it's...just another vision."

By then he had remembered the events that brought him to this place. He had taken a hard fall earlier and passed out. This was just a dream, and one final pang of fear struck him as he thought of what might happen to his real body, which must still be lying in the doll room of his house. Alas, there was nothing he could do about that, so for now he would watch the girl carefully.

In no hurry to move and waste more energy, Ryokan stared up at the girl that stood on top of him. Feeling a pulse of juvenile curiosity, he poked at the girl's leg. It was both bewildering and amusing to watch his hand pass through with no resistance. Meanwhile the girl looked around the closet worriedly, as he had done. Her eyes focused on the key, and she grabbed it eagerly with both her hands. She didn't seem to have the camera that Ryokan had been missing. Studying her face discerningly, he saw a spitting image of Yae. This was the girl...the sister of the injured one that had been in the doll room.

Then both of them jumped as a hand banged fiercely against the closet door.

_"Yae, I'm going to give you until the count of three to open this door," _Sae hissed. Ryokan felt his hopes for this girl's safety drop as he realized the situation was worse than he thought. Sae had mistaken this girl for Yae, the object of her murderous affections.

_One..._

The girl backed up as far as she could against the wall and pumped her legs, ready to run. Her face betrayed almost no fear, but she was still twitching anxiously.

_Two..._

Ryokan was awestruck. He had been ready to die earlier, but this girl was going to fight. Youth definitely wasn't wasted on her.

"Three!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, drawing strength from her own rage. Ryokan lifted himself up as well and followed her, if not as quickly, as she forced the closet open and ran out. Despite her impressive, nearly insane courage, it was obvious that the girl was fighting to suppress her own terror. He could see it in her panicked running.

"What happened to Sae?" Ryokan suddenly worried, not seeing her anywhere. Walking out of the closet, his breath hitched in his throat when Sae exploded out of the wall to his right. However, she also had no perception of him, and focused all her attention on the girl instead. Fully aware of this, she quickened her pace and hurried to unlock the nearby door with the key from the closet.

_"Why didn't you open the door, Mio?"_ Sae spoke in what Ryokan assumed must be an imitation of Mayu's voice. Mio unlocked the door and hurled herself into the next room. Ryokan squeezed through the door with her just before she slammed it in Sae's face. Then she turned hastily and ran to another closet and hid herself inside.

"So that's your name...Mio," Ryokan said. Behind him, Sae bucked the door open and floated straight through his body. A shiver worked its way down his spine as he moved far away from her. Both of them surveyed the new room. The last room in the tatami row was bare, like the others, the only furnishings being one cabinet and some pillows set aside. The door across from them had no knob and was guarded by a four foot tall mechanism to its right.

Seeing that mechanism, the machine that locked the door to the heaven bridge on the other side, drained the blood from Ryokan's face. Suddenly, his fear had returned to him – his fear for Mio's life.

_"I'm beginning to think that you're deliberately avoiding me," _Sae mocked her "sister" before retreating back into the last room to search elsewhere. Slowly, Mio emerged from the closet to examine the device that Ryokan was already familiar with. It required two identical "twin" dolls to be inserted into their proper sockets in order to function. However, that was the entire problem: three decades ago, after the event that had killed three people and seriously injured Ryokan himself, the Kiryu house had been declared unsafe. To prevent more unnecessary deaths, the entire building had been boarded up, but to close off all means of accessing it, including the Heaven Bridge, Ryokan had hidden one of the dolls the mechanism required...

...in _his_ house.

Mio was dead. She had no means of escaping Sae, and he knew it. Before too long, she would know it as well.

"N...no..." Both Ryokan and his heart sunk to the floor. Unaware of his mourning, Mio ran back through the door to look for the missing doll, not knowing that she wouldn't find it. This couldn't be happening; it wasn't supposed to be this way. After all that she and her sister had gone through, were Mio and Mayu really doomed to die for his mistakes?

Mio came crashing back through the door, openly horrified and gasping for breath this time. Soon after, Sae drifted into the room casually, a demented smile plastered onto her face. She was in no hurry since "Yae" couldn't escape now. The door closed and sealed itself behind her.

Sae didn't waste any time and lunged for her "dear sister". Left with no other recourse, Mio's survival instincts took over and propelled her away from the spirit's embrace. A sad game of demon tag played out in the room, with Mio dodging at least a dozen attempts by Sae to seize her. It couldn't last, however, and eventually Mio faltered long enough to allow Sae to just barely grab hold of her hair with one hand. It was enough to throw her off balance as a tuft got ripped out by the roots. Seizing her chance, Sae snared Mio's body with both her arms and squeezed...

Ryokan turned away quickly and shut his eyes tight; he couldn't watch this. Just the sounds, the choked cries of agony, Sae's triumphant giggling, was enough to paint an image of horror in his mind. Mio kicked, thrashed, gritted her teeth, and screamed with fury in a rancorous attempt to throw the spirit off. It didn't work; Sae was far too strong and merely enjoyed herself.

_"Did you honestly think you could just leave me to die? Escape and live your life without me?" _Sae's playful voice became furious, sharp, and the old man flinched as he heard cruel blows being added to the attack. All Mio could do was groan and squeak in response to each one. Eventually, Sae got tired of the game and ended the fight with a sickening snap of bones that preceded a deafening shriek of pain. At last, Ryokan heard Mio slump to the floor, still crying in agony.

Sae's father couldn't take any more; his curiosity overpowered his guilt and possessed him. He opened his eyes and immediately scanned Mio's twitching body for signs of injury. It didn't take long for his eyes to land on a violently broken right ankle. Mio reached for the destroyed limb with both arms, screaming out her misery while Sae cackled and watched blood leak out of exposed arteries, staining the straw floor that it poured onto.

A torrential combination of anger and shame pouring from his heart, Ryokan backed up to the wall, pounding it with his fist and fighting the urge to vomit. Watching someone innocent die because of his mistakes was even worse than knowing that he was going to die himself. A hurricane blew in his mind, shattering his brain into jagged fragments that leaked painfully out of his ears. Losing control, he screamed and kicked at Sae's face.

"Let her go!" he roared as his kimono whirled around him. The foot passed harmlessly through his former daughter's head. Within a minute or two he had tired himself out, and he sank into a drained heap on the floor.

Sae, meanwhile, waited patiently for Mio to calm down. Eventually her screaming turned to muddled whimpering as bodily chemicals rushed to her wound, calming it, and when that happened, Sae spoke.

"Why...why couldn't you just come back for me like you were supposed to...like you promised you would?" Sae turned her back to Mio and closed her eyes. It looked like she was attempting to hold in something like sorrow. Her features softened, and so did her voice. "Didn't our time together matter to you? Those days that we spent playing together by the village's river, making funny faces at each other, making fun of dad's latest temper tantrum, trying to kiss both of Itsuki's cheeks at the same..."

Sae's moment of elation was interrupted by a scuffing sound. Her bitterness returned in force, and she snapped her head toward the source of the noise. Desperate and delirious from pain, Mio was trying to crawl away. Sae simply shook her head in a disappointed gesture and stared at her for awhile, before floating gradually toward her. When Mio found herself cornered at the edge of the room, she turned onto her back and gazed intently at Sae with a dazed look on her face. Mio couldn't move further; she watched in horror as Sae inched closer until she was looming over her. She tilted her head in a playful manner, examining the worry on Mio's face, their eyes locking.

"You should listen to me when I'm talking to you, Yae," she hissed. The demonic girl bent down and grasped Mio's right leg with a seemingly dainty hand. Showing no mercy, she squeezed it tightly enough to make the veins in her hand pop out. Her grip felt as real as any other touch and Mio shouted in distress as Sae's nails dug into her skin.

"Does it hurt Yae?" Sae asked calmly as she dragged the bleeding girl back to the center of the room. Settling for nothing less than humiliation as well as helplessness, Sae lifted Mio off the ground before dropping her onto her back. Mio's squirming ceased as Sae followed her down to the ground and straddled her chest, effectively pinning her there and overloading her nerves with that icy chill that Ryokan hadn't been able to stand for even a second. The room fell quiet as Sae waited for Mio to stop struggling against her. When her body finally became limp, Sae continued the chiding where it had left off.

"For decades I've waited in darkness for you to return," her voice was a sharp hiss once more. "Even though you left me to die in that ravine in the forest all those years ago, I was still ready to give you the second chance that I thought you might deserve. I even kept the village just as it was on the last day before the failed ritual that changed everything. And now...now that you're finally back, are you really just going to run away again?"

While Sae waited for Mio to answer, Ryokan eyed his daughter with curiosity. When she had caught Mio and trapped her in this room, the old man had been certain that a quick and likely painful death would be all that awaited the unfortunate outsider. Certainly, like all other spirits in this village, Sae wouldn't be able to control herself. And for a moment, Sae had looked and acted like she was ready to tear the girl apart without a second thought, but now here they were, talking. Sae was showing much more restraint than Ryokan had thought her capable of. Something didn't feel right about it...

Mio, meanwhile, stared owlishly up at her tormentor. She could still feel the blood gushing out of her ankle, feel the world growing fainter with every passing second. She was too far gone to even feel fear properly, but one emotion still drove her.

"...let...let me go," she begged feebly, "I need to find Mayu...I need to find her and get her out of here..."

Sae just frowned at the reply. She looked like someone had told her a tasteless joke. "Stop pretending to be someone else just to get out of keeping your promise," she said curtly. "Your irresponsibility, and my refusal to put my foot down soon enough, is what caused all this. All the villagers that died, and all the outsiders that _will_ die, all because of us. And that's ignoring..."

**"Us?"** suddenly Mio's glassy eyes lit up with fury, and even through her ever-weakening voice, Ryokan and Sae could both hear anger. Something had risen inside her, alongside her concern for Mayu, that needed to be heard. "You _killed_ all of those people, you and that...Kusabi thing! And did you ever trust Yae instead of just choosing to believe that she had betrayed you? Who the hell are you to judge anyone else?"

Sae shook with rage at her outburst, and raised one of her hands. Mercilessly, she struck at the trapped girl's face several times, each slap harsh enough to send flecks of saliva and blood flying from her mouth. Sitting from his spectators position, Ryokan only wished that he could say something, or do something reassuring, something that she would notice. Even in her predicament, Mio was thinking of his villagers alongside the person that she cared about most. This girl truly was special.

"**Stop** talking about yourself like you're not here, **Yae**!" Sae's agitated voice resonated through the room. "I **wanted** to trust you, and I **didn't want** anyone innocent to get hurt, but you didn't leave me a lot of options when you left! I did what I had to do to make sure that you and I could be together again, even if it meant killing everybody else. I swore that I would wait forever until you returned. My patience, my devotion, my curse, all for you. I'm **not** letting you go now that you're back, not again!"

Ryokan's heart pounded in his ears as he watched the display with horror. He knew that this vision only had one outcome for Mio.

"I can't perform the Crimson Sacrifice...with you, or with Mayu," Mio sobbed. Finally succumbing to the pain and worry, tears were cascading down the girl's face in gentile streams that stained the thatched floor beneath her. "I know that's what you want, but I...I just can't kill my sister."

Sae looked confused at the mention of Mio's sister, but smiled softly at her refusal to perform the sacrifice. A look of stark confusion crossed Ryokan's face as the anger seemed to flow out of his daughter, and she regained her composure. She reached down with a hand, tenderly this time, and brushed her fingers against Mio's cheek.

"I could never stay mad at you, Yae. Don't worry, I won't make you perform the sacrifice," both Mio and Ryokan calmed a little at these words. "It wouldn't work, anyway. After all, I'm already dead, so of course you can't kill me like you were supposed to. But don't worry, Yae." Suddenly, Sae's smile sharpened. "There are other ways for us to be together forever."

Still smiling calmly, Sae lifted her hand off of Mio's cheek and placed it on top of her throat.

"But in order for it to happen," Mio's eyes went wide as Sae moved her other hand to the girl's neck and grasped it firmly with both, "you need to become like me."

Mio knew what "like me" meant. Consumed by a rush of terror, she froze on the spot, too scared to even speak or plead for her life, or Mayu's. Ryokan felt his sense of relief dissolve, replaced with more horror and confusion as he looked on. Her face was so calm, her smile once again warm and maybe even genuine as her grip on Mio's flesh tightened. If there was any anger or sense of vengeance in her pale body, it wasn't showing now.

"I'm going to kill you, Yae, and then we're going to be together forever...just like we promised. I know it seems difficult now, but trust me...you'll learn to love it."

Her victim yelped in pain, grasping at her neck with both hands in a vain attempt to pry Sae's off. Choking, she tried to pull away from the spirit, but Sae was done with gentile gestures and held her sister in that embrace until she was too weak to move any more. She could feel the warm pulse beating beneath her hands, and she _liked_ it. It was almost addictive, in fact, and Sae didn't want it to ever end. Clearly, her father had been crazy when he talked about the Crimson Sacrifice, because _this_ was better than anything she had ever imagined.

Desperate, the girl tried to cry out, and Ryokan could see her voicing Mayu's name with her lips, but no sound came. Finally, her prying arms lost their strength and fell awkwardly at her sides, and her eyes became still and lifeless.

Sae only rose from her place on top of Mio when she was sure that her pulse had ceased. She almost felt sad that it was over, but now it was just a matter of time before her sister's spirit appeared in the village. Satisfied, she drifted toward the nearest door out of the room.

"I waited over 100 years for this moment," Sae's voice echoed as she disappeared through the door, "and it was worth...every...second."

Now alone in the room, Ryokan sat paralyzed where he was, staring at Mio's lifeless body, unable to accept her death. His fault...all his fault...he could have prevented this.

"Oh, Sae," he whispered as the vision ended and the room grew dark.

"what have I turned you into?"

xxXXxx

In the Kurosawa house where he had originally lost consciousness, Ryokan's body began to re-animate slowly as the vision ended. When he began to stir, a single Crimson Butterfly that had perched on top of his head when he first blacked out stirred as well. The small creature flapped its wings and flew out of the room quickly before his senses were sharp enough to detect it. Groaning, he sat up slowly, rubbing the back of his aching head to feel the large bump that his fall had left there. His body felt heavy and numbed, as if large sheets were wrapped tightly around it, but through perseverance and guilt for Mio, the old man forced himself to stand. Unable to walk right away, he leaned against the wall.

"I'm sorry," Ryokan repeated in his mind, thinking of her. But wait...it wasn't just his fault, was it? The Malice and Sae had been right there to cause all of this when he made it possible with his ignorance. If anything, Sae was _more_ at fault; the Malice may have corrupted her, but she had been the one to close her hands around Mio's throat in the end. This madness was _going_ to end. Mio and Mayu didn't deserve to die in this place, no matter who was at fault.

"Now I've got two more reasons to find a way to free us all," Ryokan croaked angrily, but his resolve weakened when he remembered that he had nothing back it up. This was where his current plan ended, the one that he had vested his final hopes in. Mio and Mayu's plight couldn't give him any clues if they were both gone, and what were the odds that he would experience _another_ vision before he ran out of time? Each passing moment was making him weaker; no...he needed something _now_, but what?

Strangely, even though his last plan had failed like all the others, he couldn't shake the feeling that it had brought him close. Something was tugging at him, an obvious idea that he just couldn't understand clearly. Like a soft tune playing; all around him, but so inaudible that he had to concentrate on each note just to hear it.

Gritting his teeth in discomfort as he pried into his own brain for answers, Ryokan closed his eyes and tried to think back to the vision from before. Back to Sae's behavior, her surprising sense of sanity, her heightened self-awareness, the sudden changes in mood that had been so strange. Her words..."I did what I had to do"...what did they mean?

Then his mind dragged him back to the last part of his memory, the part where he had witnessed Mio's death. It re-sparked one of his last emotions before everything had gone dark...he had wanted to do something for Mio. Anything, something to help her. There wasn't much he could do when he didn't even know what time period she lived in, but he did remember what had caused her death, and he could rectify it, even from his current position. With no further delay he wandered back over to the doll stand that Kiyomi had prided herself on. Gazing intently at the dolls displayed there, his eyes landed on one that stood out. Among several brightly colored ones, one doll was hidden away in the corner of the stand. A dark gray thing with long, black hair and a red cord around its waist. This was the one Mio had needed, the twin doll that, when coupled with its matching duplicate, could open the Heaven Bridge door. Removing it from the stand and stashing it in his silvery robes, Ryokan stole away from the room and headed for the house's exit.

xxXXxx

All Gods' voided exterior felt more menacing than it had before, when Ryokan stepped out of his home with the doll in his possession. A dry wind whistled by him, filling the surroundings with a keening more unsettling than the silence his village had been gripped by earlier. The bitter cold clung to him like a living thing. It was as if Mio's presence had been his guardian, and without it, death was finally free to claim him. Perhaps eeriest of all, the vacantly dark sky was now obscured by even thicker clouds that concealed strange flashes of light above. Curious, Ryokan stared up at the sky for a few minutes. His reward was a flash of lightning that branched out around him, throwing macabre shadows down at the ground and animating the previously still sky. Like a hungry stomach, the village rumbled as the crack of thunder followed, sounding across the land.

Bracing himself for what would be a painful, energy-depriving walk, Ryokan took a deep breath as if to suck Mio's warm sense of courage into his own heart. No time for apprehension now. Oh well, at least it wasn't raining.

While he journeyed to the Tachibana house, Ryokan kept himself company (and blocked out the terrifying thunder claps) by analyzing the vision over and over again in his head, looking for something useful hidden inside. The lonely walk brought him no answers, but he still felt relief wash over him when he arrived at the house's door. Just getting away from the storm would help him think.

xxXXxx

Navigating to the row of tatami rooms was easy for Ryokan. Arriving at the sight where he had seen Mio die was not. He almost couldn't bear to look at the floor where her blood had spilled. Her final gasping breaths sounded out in his head, and rather than stay and make himself miserable, Ryokan went right ahead to do what he had come to do. Moving into the third room, the one with the closet that Mio had appeared in, Ryokan searched around for the door key she had found here. When he did see it, glinting just barely in the darkness, the old man reached out and placed the doll gingerly behind it. He knew the seemingly arbitrary choice of where to hide the doll for her was important. It had to be somewhere that he knew she would look, but out of sight at the same time. If Sae happened across it, she might hide it again. No, it would be safe here, for Mio to find. He hoped, anyway.

"Please, Mio," Ryokan whispered sadly as he and the doll stared at each other. "If I should fail to break this village's curse, please...be safe."

Ryokan stepped out of the closet solemnly. His eyes traveled over to the adjacent door that led into the room where she'd died. Putting a hand against the nearest wall, he closed his eyes. "Why, Sae. Why couldn't you just let her live? Why did you choose to...?"

Ryokan's eyes snapped open, and he froze where he stood. The burst of inspiration came to him quick and unexpected like the volleys of thunder breaking outside. _That_ was it, what he had been missing the whole time! Sae had _chosen_ to kill Mio! Whether it was to "be together" with her, or to take revenge and kill her, ultimately didn't matter. Sae hadn't killed Mio because of some insatiable, uncontrollable hatred burning inside her. No, that was what propelled all the other spirits in the village, but not Sae. He finally realized what tied all of Sae's strange behaviors together. Her sanity, her advanced mindfulness, her every word spoken to Mio, they all made sense now. Freedom...the license to do what she wanted, not be some mindless killer. That was what set Sae apart from all of the other demons in this village, even the Malice itself, with its indiscriminate desire for violence. Although Sae had killed many people too, she had a clear-cut reason to want them dead. Her actions had motive. She had purpose...

"My god," Ryokan gasped for breath as his heart raced, "this is what I've been missing. It's what makes Sae important to all of this. How could I not have seen it earlier?"

Hell, it occurred to Ryokan that even if he hadn't realized what single trait explained Sae's strangeness, he really didn't need to. The mere fact that she was quite different from all the other spirits in the village, including the Malice itself, rather than _just_ another spirit, told him everything he needed to know. It had taken a long time, but he knew what he had to do now. He _had_ his plan to end the curse, or at least try to.

A clear purpose echoing in his soul for the first time in days, thirty years of age seemed to leave Ryokan's body as he barreled out of the Tachibana house with frenetic drive.

But when he arrived back outside, with the thunder beating down overhead as if to beat the optimism out of him, he stopped, some of his momentum instantly gone. He _did_ have a plan, but the old man realized that carrying it out would be more difficult than anything he had ever imagined. In fact, maybe _that_ was why he hadn't thought of his current proposal until now; his own mind was trying to protect him.

"In order to put my scheme into action," he took deep breaths, trying to keep fear from damaging his resolve, "I need to willingly find and _be attacked_ by the most dangerous spirit in this entire village."

The old man walked back toward the Kurosawa house with his camera clutched at his side as larger and larger bursts of lightning rang out overhead.

"I need to find Sae."

xxXXxx

This was the first chapter in the story to directly mirror a canon event in the game. If you've played Fatal Frame 2, then you may have noticed that Ryokan was following Mio's actions in Chapter 7 of the game, with the twist that she would've died without a bit of intervention on Ryokan's part.

Ryokan's new plan that I eluded to at the end of this chapter is being kept obscure for now. There will be much more detail on Ryokan's new idea in the next chapter. Until then, feel free to speculate on what's got him so excited. ;)

This story is getting tougher to write as we get closer to the end, but I hope that the quality isn't suffering too much. The next update will come in a couple of weeks. Reviews will be appreciated, and thank you for reading.


	30. Chapter 30: No Turning Back

Thanks to Fan of Games for reviewing the last chapter. Your continued support is very appreciated. :) Truthfully, in this fic, Sae's differences from the other spirits are exaggerated a bit since no one is able to talk to the spirits in the game itself, but I still do believe that Sae is unique to this game. That uniqueness will be important in this chapter and the next.

Sorry that this update took awhile to get finished. I hope you all enjoy it.

xxXXxx

Chapter 30: No Turning Back

Ryokan held an arm up to his face and expelled a watery, phlegm-filled cough as he jogged with muffled enthusiasm toward his home. Over his head, the lightning and cloud cover intensified, reflecting the old man's own impatience. It really was a stroke of fortune that he had come up with a new strategy, even if it wasn't very good, because soon he would be too lifeless to do anything. Some blood had appeared on his sleeve with that last cough...

Eager rushing had become a tired walk by the time Ryokan arrived at Whisper Bridge. There, Kurosawa House waited for him, its withered old facade menacing with the branches of lightning breaking behind it.

"Is this place going to be my grave...?" Ryokan thought before he could stop himself. Across the bridge he ran, holding onto the stout, wooden railings for support. He walked through the front grounds without paying any mind to the shadowy figures that stood there, watching him. They were just more villagers; he knew (or hoped) these spirits wouldn't hurt him. He opened the double doors and walked into the rundown parlor, stopping for a few seconds to scan for signs of danger. When he didn't see any, he walked through the first hallway and took a right, accidentally jamming the sliding door open as he pushed through it.

Stepping into the old storage room, the one beneath his study, Ryokan looked around, letting his eyes adjust to the dark. He'd passed through here several times already during his jaunt in the post-Repentance village, not paying attention to the old pieces of furniture and appliances that called this place home when not in use. This time, however, he knew something necessary to his plan was probably hidden somewhere in here. First and foremost, he had to find more film to reload the Camera Obscura with. His plans wouldn't succeed without it. That's why he was here.

The former Ceremony Master bent down slowly, startled at the cracking of his own bones, and sat near the first pile of clutter that he would search in. Tugging away the protective dust cloth, Ryokan coughed up more blood as he pushed the contents of the pile around with his hands, looking for the bright packaging of camera film to reveal itself in the dim light. Poking around long enough uprooted a bunch of toys that Yae and Sae had played with when they were younger. Everything nearby seemed to relate to their early childhood. There probably wasn't any film here; Ryokan decided to leave the pile alone for the moment. He picked himself up with an exhausted breath and went to search underneath the nearby staircase instead.

_Keep going, you're almost there...wherever "there" may be...probably nowhere._

The muscles in Ryokan's arms and legs stiffened irritably, hatred stirring in his heart when he heard _that_ voice nagging him again. This had gone on long enough!

"Stop with these tricks, Malice!" Ryokan shouted in no particular direction, ignoring the burning feeling in his chest. "I don't know how you got back into my mind, but I can tell that these aren't my own thoughts."

A few moments of silence passed while Ryokan continued to comb the old trash for signs of film, moving from corner to corner of the storage area. Then he heard psychotic, low-pitched laughter echoing throughout the house. By now, that distinctive crowing was easily recognizable, but that didn't make him hate it any less. He heard the Malice's deep, coarse voice calling out to him:

_You may have weakened my influence over you with that shot from the camera back in the Kureha Shrine, but you can't escape me forever. I'm all around you. Don't you remember what was said to happen to people who live in cursed places for too long? The darkness consumes them and strips away their sanity. It's a nice little fail-safe I have that takes care of any pesky survivors who aren't killed by the other vengeful spirits. You've probably guessed by now that this is happening to you as well, and you're right. Yes, it's just a matter of time now. _

Ryokan didn't falter in response to the Malice's troubling words. It was right, probably, but his identity as a Ceremony Master gave him some immunity from the darkness' effects; it had only gotten to him once so far. Besides, regardless of how fast his grip on reality was slipping, his recent revelation had given him bigger things to worry about. The Malice's boastful words didn't scare him, overshadowed by his impending conflict with his daughter's spirit.

"Save us both the effort and stop trying to scare me, Malice," Ryokan stated defiantly, continuing to shove aside and overturn rubble in his search for camera film. "It's over. I have my plan to break this village's curse."

Immediately an outburst of wild, uncontrolled laughter rocked the building's frame. Slowly it died down, until the room was quiet again.

_Sure you do, Ryokan._

The old man could hear the doubt, the mocking in the demon's voice. It set his teeth on edge, filled him with a craving for violence begging to be taken out on _something_. Ryokan just wanted to murder the monster, with the camera if not his bare hands! Alas, it didn't have a body for him to skin alive, so all he could do was fume in silence.

_You know, you can stop now; that's enough. Your great effort to free the spirits from this village was noble, but there's nothing more you can..._

"I'm going to find Sae, and I'm going to use Seijiro's camera to purge her spirit from this village, once and for all," Ryokan growled. It may not have been the best move to reveal his plan to the demon that wanted to stop it, but the Malice didn't seem to have any real power over him anymore. Besides, now that its assertions were wrong, Ryokan wanted to make sure it knew so.

"It's not a perfect plan," he continued, "and I don't like the idea of causing Sae more pain, but she _is_ the one who destroyed my village and trapped the villagers' spirits. It stands to reason that purifying her soul might free them."

Ryokan felt a contemptuous bit of glee permeate his frustration when prolonged silence followed his admission of the new plan. It seemed to have caught the Malice off guard. Still searching high and low for useful salvage, Ryokan's sense of joy doubled when he finally noticed a glint of light shining through a gap in a small pile of items that had been confiscated from Seijiro before he met his fate in the Hellish Abyss. Tossing other junk aside to get to it, he picked up the thin, square cartridges and examined them. The casing was red, and devoid of any wear or scratches. It was still in excellent condition, but before the old man could insert the film into the camera to make sure it worked, something happened that quashed his confidence immediately. With the blink of his eyes and a flash of light, Ryokan felt himself pulled abruptly back into the bizarre room that he had visited once before, in the Kureha Shrine, where he had spoken with the Malice "in person".

Within the interior of his own mind once more, Ryokan looked around curiously. There could only be one reason for his being brought back here: the Malice wanted another heart-to-heart talk, in person, likely to scare him into abandoning his plan. Ryokan didn't mind that part; he had spoken to the Malice many times before and would do so again if there was no way to escape it, which did seem to be the case since his camera was once again missing from his hands. What really confused him was the drastic change in the mind room's appearance since his last visit. It was _much_ larger than before, so huge that the old man couldn't see its walls in any direction. The floor at his feet was a rippled arrangement of black and white tiles that sloped and fell like wrinkled skin, making it difficult for Ryokan to even remain standing on the uneven surface. Now lacking the decorations and furniture from before, the room bore nothing but twisted columns of gray marble that erupted from the floor to support a thin, gray, dilapidated ceiling that looked ready to collapse on itself. Through gaping holes in it, Ryokan could see a black, abyssal sky looming outside. About 25 feet from bottom to top, the cavernous room looked like it was withering away. It almost felt like the bareness was _intentional_, a blank slate waiting to fulfill some yet to be determined purpose.

Gazing back down from the ceiling, Ryokan's eyes fell on a familiar figure, standing in front of him. The Malice had appeared, much as it had done the last time he found himself here. Lacking any physical appearance of its own, the Malice had once again copied his. The only differences were a black, tattered kimono, and the red, gleaming eyes that stared into Ryokan's relentlessly, barely able to hide their malicious desires.

"Haven't we already moved past this, old man?" the demon continued the conversation from before, speaking calmly and confidently. "The Repentance was my doing; Sae's just another pawn in this game."

The skepticism was plain on Ryokan's face. "You keep telling me that, but recently I got to take a better look at Sae, and her motives, and now I'm not so sure," he said, thinking back to what he had witnessed in the vision of Mio's death. The Malice's lies wouldn't slice it for him this time. "She's the only spirit in this village who kept her sanity, to some degree. I saw her look a person that she thought was her sister straight in the eyes, and admit that this village was destroyed because she 'did what she had to do'. Do you really expect me to believe that's all a coincidence?"

"Where did you see any of that?" the Malice challenged him to give the source of his inspiration. It didn't seem aware that Ryokan had witnessed his vision of Sae and Mio.

"Where I saw it isn't important, although I should be thanking you," Ryokan explained. "The ability to see into the future that you gave me. You used it to scare me into doing your bidding before and after the Repentance, but in the end it wound up benefiting me. I saw exactly what I needed to. If only you knew what irony meant."

Comprehension dawned on the Malice. Ryokan was right; it _had_ given him the ability to see future visions of horror, in order to scare him and make him easier to manipulate. Still, it just seemed too coincidental that the old fool had seen something to give him this inspiration. Was his sixth sense really this powerful on its own, or was Ryokan being assisted by some other spirit? The Malice made a note to find the answer to this question later.

"You got away with one more lie that I was dumb enough to believe," Ryokan continued, anger and humiliation showing in his voice. "All this time, I've been focusing on you and forgetting about Sae's role in all of this. That's what had me thinking that this curse was impossible to beat. Now that I know she's more important than you've been letting on, coming up with my final plan was much easier. This is a type of curse that I _know_ how to fight; exorcising evil spirits is what I do best!"

"What makes Sae so special?" the Malice asked, its jovial tone of voice deliberately masking its true frustration. "The Kusabi is a powerful spirit too, stronger than her, in fact. What makes you think that Sae caused the Repentance? It's my power, my influence that blankets this village, not hers."

Ryokan's frown deepened; the Malice wouldn't let him out of here without giving him a run for his money. However, he had guessed that the Malice would ask a question like this, and he already knew why the demon was wrong. As a child, he had been trained for his life as a Ceremony Master by his father, Sengoku, and had learned the nature of curses. He knew what made them "tick", and how Sae must be the creator of the curse that plagued his village now.

"The Kusabi is just an enraged monster, with an insatiable appetite for blood. Kind of like _you_," he said without hesitation. Affronted by the indirect insult, the Malice grimaced. "But Sae, on the other hand, is special. Curses can only be created when people die resenting or fearing something so much, that they simply can't accept their own deaths. Sae died resenting the villagers that refused to let her wait for Yae's return, resenting Yae herself for leaving, and fearing that she would never see her sister again. I can hear her final words, screaming in my head..."

_Forever...I'll wait forever._

"_That's_ what it takes to create a curse like the Repentance, not indiscriminate hatred like yours. You probably can't even remember your _own_ purpose for existing; only that you want people to die."

Ryokan waited for an answer, but several minutes passed without reply from the demon. It just stood there, face scrunched up as if a foul smell had entered the room, staring at its former unwilling ally curiously. _The old fool's determination is strange_, the Malice thought to itself. _Challenging his lack of evidence that exorcising Sae will undue this village's curse doesn't seem to be working. What else can I say to make him give this up?_

Suddenly, the demon's face broke into a wide smile. It knew _exactly_ what to say next.

"So...what do you _really_ think will happen to you now?" it asked, grinning wickedly. Caught off guard by the strange question, Ryokan just stared back at the demon, too puzzled to form a response. Impatient, the Malice stepped back and leaned against a nearby pillar, his black kimono making it appear alabaster by comparison, before explaining the meaning of its question:

"I can see that you're desperate to find a way to undue your village's curse, and now that you think Sae had a hand in it, you also think using that camera on her will make everything better again. However, I can promise you that nothing you try to that end will work, even if you were right. Sae is too strong to be beaten; do you really think that you'll come out alive if you try to fight her?"

Now Ryokan understood: the demon was taking the low road and trying to scare him with the possibilities of what might happen to him if he carried out his plan. It was a smart move on its part. In his tiredness, the old man's fears were becoming exalted. Before, he had been able to filter out stray noises and sights without worry, but now every creak and groan of the village, and the specters living in it, were starting to bother him more and more. Nonetheless, Ryokan wouldn't be tempted to quit, not now, when he was so close.

"I've survived this long," he said obstinately. The Malice let out a wild, amused cackle in response.

"Ha! Maybe so, but you _hardly_ did it on your own," the demon sneered.

"If you're trying to boost your own ego, don't bother," Ryokan replied, uninterested in the Malice's words. He assumed that, when the Malice said he "didn't survive on his own", it was referring to the time that he and the Malice had been "allies". In truth, however, the Malice was talking about something else entirely, a small detail from the Repentance itself, that the old man had yet to recollect.

"Oh, I'm not talking about myself," it said with an amused tone. "I'm talking about the person who saved your life during the Repentance. Don't you remember what happened that night? The Kusabi attacked you, and injured you pretty badly."

Ryokan's eyes went wide, his mouth slightly agape as the memories flooded back to him. Yes, he remembered it; the Kusabi had nearly killed him during the Repentance. The old man reached down to his kimono, pulled it partially open at the chest, and looked down at the massive scar that the monster had left on him that night. At the time, he had been sure that his life would end then and there.

"You should've died that night, along with everyone else," the Malice continued. "And you _would_ have, _if_ someone hadn't been there to save you. Don't you want to know who it was?"

The old man did desperately want to know. He had never gotten the chance to look at his savior that night. The pain surging through his body had made it impossible for him to turn his head and look. Thinking about who had saved him had never produced results before; no one in the village had survived, so how could anyone have been there?

That's when the horror dawned on Ryokan. What if...he had been saved by someone who was already dead? A victim of the Repentance? There were only two in the village that could've done it, and one had been imprisoned in the storehouse. That only left...

"It was your daughter, Sae, old man! **She** is the one who saved your life!"

At the moment he heard that, Ryokan's world stopped turning. He couldn't speak; it felt like gauze had entered his mouth and dried out his tongue. Unable to maintain his composure any longer, his sense of horror built as he thought back to the night of the Repentance, fruitlessly trying to piece together how it could be possible. After all this time, all his struggling, could it really be true that his daughter, the dead girl who massacred the village he had loved, had been the one to save him from danger? Was _she_ all he had to thank for being alive now?

"That's...how can that be? It's not possible! You're lying again, you have to be!" the old man screamed, unable to comprehend the about face in his knowledge of Sae. Caught up in his own terror, he didn't notice that, above and around him, the room's top half was beginning to slowly disintegrate. The gray pillars shrunk down, while the ceiling became thinner and thinner.

The Malice smirked with satisfaction. Yes, it had known that Ryokan wouldn't take this well, but the demon wasn't lying, not this time. It even had some unusual proof that the claim was true.

"Believe what you want, fool, but I was there when it happened!" it snapped mercilessly, not giving Ryokan time to recover. "She is the one who dragged you away from the Kusabi, and hid you in your house's jail cell, a location where she knew it wouldn't find you. After that, she left to finish off the surviving villagers, but when she returned, you weren't there. Look and see it for yourself!"

Beckoning him to follow its gaze, the Malice looked up and pointed at the ceiling. Both of them waited silently while the room's gray, twisted vaulting shrank, little by little, creating larger and larger holes that exposed the sky above. In mere moments, the roofing had withered away completely, leaving a sea of black over their heads. It didn't stay black for long, however. The sky above lit up and brought itself to life, color filling it until the entire horizon had reproduced a fully detailed image of what had happened on that night. To the Malice, the spectacle was nothing interesting, but to Ryokan, it was like being propelled back into the past. The image felt genuine to him; every detail of his appearance and position, as well as the Kusabi's, were correct. Viewed from above, Ryokan could see Sae's figure behind him, her arms hooked underneath his own as she dragged him back, away from the wraith's fearsome attacks.

Gradually, the image changed, depicting Sae wandering into the jail cell sometime after Ryokan had woken up and left it to explore the village. A frown crossed her face before turning around to leave and search for him.

"But Sae tried to kill me after the Repentance was over!" Ryokan yelled, confusion and surprise still plaguing him. "In front of the Kurosawa house; I remember it!"

He shouted this to the sky itself, willing the strange projection to confirm his memory. It obliged; the image above them changed to show the front of the Kurosawa house just after he had fled into its basement, following Sae's attempt to attack him. It also showed her floating there, staring at the door he had disappeared behind, but the expression on her face was one of sorrow and frustration, not anger.

"Did she really?" the Malice asked in an amused tone, turning its head back down to stare at the old man. Its task completed, the sky fell dark once more. "No, Ryokan, I don't think that's what she wanted. She was _looking_ for you, no doubt, but whenever Sae caught up to you, you would always escape before you got to see what she would do next. You've only survived this long because she wanted you to, but what do you think will happen if she finally catches you?"

Ryokan wanted to know the answer to that last question very much. What was Sae planning?

"But why? Why save the father who used and betrayed her?" he intoned this question to the Malice, who smiled and answered honestly.

"Oh, I don't know, old man," the Malice exposed jagged teeth with its wicked smile. "Maybe she just needs you alive for something."

Immediately Ryokan wondered if there was some wisdom to the demon's suggestion. Before he could finish thinking about it, however, the darkness hanging above them both drifted down to ground level, consuming the room in shadow as the strange conversation came to its end. The demon's voice echoed after everything else had faded away.

"And now _you're_ looking for _her_. If only _you_ knew what irony meant."

xxXXxx

A thud greeted Ryokan's ears when he found himself returned to the middle of the storage room. Shock had caused him to fall onto his backside. Dizzied, Ryokan rose unsteadily to his feet, nearly forgetting to acquire the new Camera Obscura film on his way out. However, even as he had what he had come for, Ryokan didn't leave the house, but wandered further into it, trekking through a set of double doors in the storage room that led to a gently twisting hallway. As much as he wanted to leave this place, something that the Malice had said had lodged itself in his mind, even overshadowing his curiosity regarding what Sae wanted with him:

_And now you're looking for her..._

Ryokan was supposed to look for Sae. He needed to find her, now that he had the means to banish her spirit from the village. But how was he supposed to know where she was now? Even if she was looking for him as well, All Gods was simply too huge for two people to easily find each other, else she would've run into him more than once since the Repentance.

He couldn't simply look everywhere for her. That would take time and energy that he didn't have. Luck (and, apparently, Sae's assistance) had kept him alive this long, but he was nearing his limits now, exhausted and hungry. Barely enough energy was left in him for such a large fight as it was. He didn't even have the expendable strength to shout at such a volume for her to potentially hear him. No, making noise wouldn't cut it. Ryokan needed a _visual_ sign to attract her to his setting of choice for their confrontation.

The old man could only think of one such sign large enough to be seen from anywhere in the village. It was a potentially suicidal plan, but it would work. Besides, a burning desire to know why Sae had saved him had driven him over the edges of his sanity. He would risk anything now.

Picking up the pace, Ryokan reached the end of the hallway, and opened the door leading into the very same room where Seijiro's jail cell had been. This dark, secluded warehouse held more than just a small confinement area. Across from the place where he had woken up after the Repentance, a small alcove resided. Inside it, a dozen or so large barrels were set aside, all containing the same product: lantern oil. It was an emergency supply, meant to help keep the village warm during a distinctly harsh winter. Instead, all of it, as well as Kurosawa house itself, would serve as his kindling for a signal fire. A _large_ one.

_What are you doing?_ The Malice's voice called out. It already knew what was going to happen, but hearing the demon's voice only reinvigorated Ryokan's drive. He started knocking over the flammable barrels, pushing them down one at a time.

"I need to lure Sae to me, in the only way that I know will work," Ryokan's voice echoed a mix of sorrow and apprehension, not surprising given his circumstances. "Like I've said before, Sae can comprehend fire. But if she's miles away right now, attracting her will require an entire inferno. She'll see the flames and come running, no matter where she is."

Ryokan stepped away to prevent the spreading sludge from staining his sandals. Walking over to a nearby lantern, lit brightly and mounted on a steel pole, he prepared to start the blaze by tipping it over.

_Ryokan, I'm giving you one last chance to stop all of this now, and walk away._ The demon's voice reached a furious octave. _Even if, by some miracle of fate, you manage to beat Sae and avoid dying in your own tinder, __**I'll be right there to end you for good!**_

"Oh please," Ryokan said at once. By now, he knew the demon was more bark than bite. "All you've done is complain since I've known you. For all your talk of strength, you're powerless yourself."

_I burned down the Tsuchihara house, old man, or did you forget? I'm **not** powerless, as you'll no doubt find out if you go through with this plan. And that's not even considering what Sae will do to you._

A breath catching in his throat, Ryokan hesitated. That was right; the Malice had somehow been able to start the fire that nearly killed him before. The risks in this plan were really piling up.

_If you start that fire, old man, there will be **no** turning back. Are you really sure that you want to throw your life away on this?_

The room fell silent while the Malice waited anxiously for Ryokan's answer. The old man stood there, eyes flickering nervously, legs frozen with apprehension as he held the burning lantern over the vats of oil. He had been committed to his plan earlier, but now the moment had come where he would seal his fate by destroying the ancestral home of his family. The fates of Mio, her sister, and all the now-dead villagers rested with him, but could Ryokan really do this? With all that could easily go wrong, the chances of the Ceremony Master succeeding in freeing his people were extremely slim. So were his chances of surviving. And his chances of doing _both_ were...

Ryokan needed to think this over one last time.

"The Malice is right," he thought nervously to himself. "This is a gamble, and there isn't much chance that I'll come out on top. But I'm _out of time_ to find something to do about this curse. Before I lose the rest of my strength, I need to take the offensive and strike where it will hurt. Attacking Sae is the best way to do that, since the Malice is still invulnerable to the camera. But once I light this fire, Sae _will_ come, and I'm sure it will end with a fight between us."

Fear choked him, a shiver coursing down Ryokan's spine as the image of Sae shattering his neck with her long, crimson rope entered his head. His thoughts became more frantic.

"And as the Malice said, I'm likely to be the loser. Sae is arguably the strongest spirit in this village. I'm an old man; even with this camera, I'm almost definitely walking into my own death. But right now I can't seem to bear the thought of running away. I promised I wouldn't leave the village to its fate, the fate _I_ caused. All I can imagine now is this fire, burning bright."

Ryokan could almost feel the heat radiating off it. It was his destiny now! There was no other choice; he would gamble against Sae and hope he won. It was for her as much as anyone else. _He_ had ordered her death, so now he needed to put her spirit to rest along with the others, even if it killed him. And if the Malice did get in his way, he would fight it too...somehow.

"For better or worse, this ends here."

Sighing deeply, Ryokan turned to leave the warehouse, a hand still gripping the lantern pole. Before proceeding out, Ryokan closed his eyes, gathered his strength, and then, without looking back, allowed the lantern to drop.

_You just signed your death warrant, old man! Prepare to die!_

The Malice roared furiously as the lantern fell, its flame igniting the spilled oil. Not waiting to see how fast the fire would spread, Ryokan broke into a sprint and darted out of the room. From the corner of his eye, he caught a sight of the barrels going up in flames, along with everything else. Retracing his steps, Ryokan shot through the twisting hallway and ran into the family's altar room, where twin staircases led to the connecting corridor. He tore along the path as fast as he could, already hearing wood and furniture splintering behind him. Running outside, he ducked under tree branches and ran along one of the two gently curving walkways that led to the tower that housed the Kusabi ritual. The garden that separated them had been host to wandering Crimson Butterflies who, sensing the fire, were scattering into the moonlit sky now. In his hurry, the old man didn't notice one that hadn't fled, and was instead fluttering alongside him, on the path adjacent to his.

Upon reaching the tower door, Ryokan stopped and turned back. He needed to see Kurosawa house's old frame one more time before proceeding inside. The sky above it was already losing the moon's light as smoke wafted upward. Standing silently, he watched with a heavy heart as the inferno grew, breaking through the house's roof and spreading into the open. It would be awhile before the blaze reached this building, but Ryokan wished that he didn't have to see any of it go. The old house had been home to so much over the last few hundred years. His father had been raised, and raised him here. He had raised his own children here, the ones who he had later betrayed. All the village's records were kept here; it was the only proof that All Gods had ever existed. The only proof that his family and friends had ever existed.

And now...it shared the fate of the Tsuchihara house. Hidden from the rest of time.

Tears in his eyes, Ryokan forced himself to turn his back on the memories that tried to flood in. There was work to be done now. He entered the ritual chamber and stepped into the darkness, closing the door behind him.

Sitting in a cross-legged position with eyes closed and camera in hand, Ryokan tried to concentrate on meditation while waiting for Sae to arrive. It was difficult; more images involving her had forced their way into his mind, bringing him the terror of what might happen. Breathing deeply, he tried to ignore it.

When Sae arrived, Ryokan intended to talk to her first, to get answers from her as well as try to calm her down and prevent a fight. If this goal failed, his survival would depend on his ability to outmaneuver her – not a good prospect for someone of his age.

There was still that thing the Malice had said...

_Maybe she just needs you alive for something._

What did she want with him?

A creak of the floorboards just ahead of him caught Ryokan's attention, who looked up and readied the camera, eyes straining to see through the shadows. The figure in front of him shifted and stepped into view, much to Ryokan's surprise.

"Chitose?" he said in awe. The small, frail girl that he had failed to save hobbled unsteadily toward him, her eyes fixed straight at the door behind him, the one that led into the Hellish Abyss. The old man knew it would be wise to let her pass, and rose from his seat and stepped aside. Instead of continuing on, however, Chitose stopped for a moment and then, changing her course, started walking toward _him_ instead. Ryokan stepped back behind the hearth in the center of the room, skin tingling with fear. Something wasn't right.

"You won't leave me alone again, right?" Chitose's distorted voice hid anger.

Her features disappeared into shadow as she passed underneath the torture device suspended above both their heads. When she stepped toward the other side of the small hearth, into the light once more, his daughter's likeness replaced her.

"Sae!" Ryokan's skin jumped as he leaped back a few more feet. Sae just floated there, in front of him, giggling madly. Shivering, Ryokan steeled himself and forced a calm frown back onto his face. He could feel her deathly chill from where he stood.

_"Hello, father,"_ she greeted him, her voice cold and lifeless. Taking short, ragged breaths, Ryokan tried to stop himself trembling. When he finally gained control of his nerves, he raised the camera up to his chest, ready to fire it at moment's notice. The camera hissed deeply, ready for anything as well. It was time to do what they had come here to do.

_"Shall we begin?"_

xxXXxx

So now we see three more pieces of the plot have been resolved:

1. How Ryokan was able to see Mio and Mayu. He is still alive, but he was able to see their actions anyway because of what the Malice did to him way back in Chapter 14 (giving him the ability to see into the future). This ability wasn't supposed to help him, but Ryokan got lucky.

2. Who saved Ryokan's life at the end of Chapter 19? It turns out that Sae was the one to save him. We'll see why in the next chapter.

3. What is Ryokan's plan now? Fan of Games was right about this one; he is planning to talk to Sae. However, there is also the addition that he will need to fight her and trap her spirit inside the Camera Obscura, if she refuses to listen to him.

The next chapter, by the way, is also _**the last one!**_ This is it, folks. It's been an extremely long road, and I am very grateful to those of you who have stuck with it all this time. But at long last, we have reached the end. There will also be an epilogue to really close this story, but both it and the concluding chapter will be posted at the same time, so there's only one more update until the story is finally finished. The conclusion to Ryokan's lifelong journey will be up in a few weeks. Thank you for reading, and reviews will be appreciated.


	31. Chapter 31: Father and Daughter, Part 1

First things first...I owe you all a serious apology. It's been eight months since the last update, making this the longest hiatus we've been on so far. While college busywork takes some of the blame here, ultimately I just got a little lazy. I hope readers can forgive me.

Originally, this update was supposed to be the last one. However, in order to keep this hiatus from extending even longer than it has so far, I've decided to break the rest of the story up into several smaller chapters, instead of a single huge one. Right now, it looks like the rest of the story will be more than 15,000 words, making it too long to post all at once. I know I've posted giant chapters (like chapter 25) before, but I feel now it was a mistake to have chapters longer than 5,000 words or so. I'll be reflecting this opinion by keeping the rest of my updates manageable in length.

The story will continue, though, and in this chapter we'll see whether or not Ryokan can avoid a fight with Sae. The beginning of the end starts here!

Thanks to Fan Of Games and OnnaMusha for reviewing the last chapter. I hope you all enjoy this one.

xxXXxx

Chapter 31: Father and Daughter, Part 1

Confined inside the statuesque, centuries-old shrine that had seen the deaths of so many innocent people before now, Ryokan and Sae stared into each other's eyes, both equally impressed that Ryokan hadn't taken one look at her and tried to run away, as he had done before. Every fiber of Ryokan's being was begging him to do just that. Every sense told him that, if he didn't get away from his daughter soon, his life would be painfully ended. He saw the sadistic glee in her eyes as she stared at him from across the room's center furnace, studying the scratches and bruises on his person, learning about what he had endured during their time apart. The blood on her kimono, dried after its spilling several days earlier, still reeked enough to reach his nostrils and churn his stomach from the three or so meters that divided them. His skin was cold and clammy, and his limbs twitched; it felt like she was already squeezing the life out of him, breathing in his death.

Realizing that he needed to calm himself down before facing her, in conversation or battle, Ryokan's first instinct was simply to distract himself. But that was impossible; the only sounds in the room that he could focus on were the creaking of the shrine's wooden frame around him, and the slowly growing fire outside that was sealing them in. In this gaping, dull sepulcher, nothing mattered but the two of them. So instead, Ryokan tried something else. He looked deep into Sae's eyes, and tried to think about the Sae that he had known _before_ the Repentance. Mentally, he pierced past the terror and anger of this demon, and tried to imagine the girl he had been stupid to ever part with. He relived all of it in brief flashes of lucid memory, from the day of her birth, to the time she and Yae had worn diapers, relying on him and Kiyomi to feed, clothe, and bathe them. From childhood, through their brief adolescence, until the final days that she and Yae had spent together. He then imagined how confused, how bitter it must've made her feel when he stepped in and forced them to give all that up. She was different now, twisted by rage, but even so, he was thinking of her as a human again, as he should've done from the beginning.

And then he stopped shivering, and his face became calm. Finally, he was ready to stop hiding, and face her.

"You shouldn't look surprised, father; this was expected," Sae spoke first, her voice uncaring and arrogant. "I've been searching for you for days without rest, in a small village. It never mattered how much you tried to avoid me. Eventually, I was going to catch up."

In the interest of not making her angry, Ryokan decided not to point out that _he_ had started the fire that had led her here. It relieved him further to hear her speak for the first time. Now he knew that she wouldn't simply lunge and kill him with no provocation, but that only made him more curios as to why she had saved his life. He would get to figuring that out soon enough, but first he had another question for her.

"Before you start with why you were looking for me, I need to ask you something, and I need you to answer honestly," Ryokan began, raising his voice slightly to make sure she knew it was important.

"And what would that be?" she asked, intrigue reflecting in her voice.

"When you came back as a spirit during the Repentance, why did you start killing the other villagers? Did you actually _want_ to hurt them, or did you feel like you had no choice?"

Ryokan tried to maintain calm while he waited on his daughter's reply, but it could never be forgiven that he had to ask his own child a question like this. Sae had been so gentle, a good-natured soul that his own could never compare to. That he could've prevented this future with something as simple as an evacuation order, and maybe a _real_ heart-to-heart talk with the members of his family, only made it more painful to him that it had still happened. Sae saw his sorrowful expression and sensed this pain, but death had made her impatient (how ironic, since she now had an eternity to wait). She would not waste precious time on his sympathies, not when Yae was at stake.

"Those villagers forced me to die without Yae at my side," she spat at her father, voice seething and bitter. "They deserved the same fate, which I delivered to them."

Ryokan's heart continued to throb. _Please...don't say it._

"_Yes_, father, I wanted to kill them. All of them," Sae's frown split apart, forming the maniacal smile that had come to define her face. "No one forced me to do what I did on the night of the Repentance. What I did, I did for myself."

Ryokan closed his eyes tight, a deep sigh of regret escaping his lungs. "You were my daughter at one point. You were compassionate, forgiving, a friend to the people who knew you...all the things I could never bring myself to be. How could you become so selfish?"

The old man's voice trailed off with anger. He loved Sae, but the resentment for what she had done was stirring. She didn't care, though, and her voice picked up a sprightly tone, as if his anger amused her.

"Selfish?" she crowed with a shake of her head, "I think you should choose your words more carefully."

Ryokan scowled. "If there's a better word for what you've done, I don't know what it might be."

"You should," Sae hissed, affronted by what she perceived as ignorance. "All I've done is lived by what you taught me, father. In a manner of speaking, anyway."

Ryokan tipped his head to one side, unsure of what the delirious girl was getting at.

"In all its existence," Sae continued, "the idea that this village's people should pay for the mistakes of others has guided and shaped All Gods. From the Crimson Sacrifice, to the Repentance itself. I learned those lessons, just as you did when you were my age."

Ryokan was quick to doubt her. "When you were younger, I taught you to respect your elders, love your sister, and do more for the villagers than for yourself. _Never_ did I teach you anything that could lead you to massacre your own kin like this!"

"Hmm..." Sae put a hand to her chin, playfully attempting to look as though she was deep in thought. "...but what happens when a person can't live by all those teachings at once? My elders, my sister, the villagers. That's an awful lot of people to care for, but I guess you'd know since you were the village's leader for decades. What would _you_ do if you had to look after so many people? Who would _you_ choose?"

Sae challenged her father to share his wisdom. No hesitation; Ryokan knew the answer that he had to give – the same one he should have followed himself.

"Well...it's too late now," he muttered reluctantly, "but I know what I should've done before the Repentance. I should've tried to find a way to look after everyone..."

"But you couldn't do it, could you?" Sae interrupted him, her voice sharp and bold. "Yae ran away and the Hellish Abyss threatened to overflow, so you had to make a choice and sacrifice _someone_. I doubt you would've sat on your thumbs and done nothing. When it came time to act, you chose the village, and sacrificed Yae and me."

Ryokan's eyelids drooped shut, and he hung his head in shame. Yes...that was certainly true.

"Literally, in my case," Sae continued. Yet her voice softened; when she had every right to be furious with her father, the girl's voice was almost _comforting_. "But I don't hate you for it."

The old man's eyes popped open again, and he raised his head, looking deep into her eyes. "And yet you _still_ took revenge on me and the others? You must have hated _someone_."

"No, father, let me finish," Sae held up a pale, white hand, bidding he remain silent. "I don't fault you for hanging me above the Hellish Abyss, simply because I know you had to. Don't you see; you were right before. There's really no way to protect everyone that you care about, not in this world. However, when you chose to sacrifice me without Yae, it put me in the same position that you had been in."

Wait, what "position" was Sae talking about? Thinking for a moment, Ryokan wondered if Sae was trying to remind him of his own Crimson Sacrifice decades earlier.

"Does what you're saying have something to do with my brother and I?" Ryokan guessed, but Sae shook her head in disappointment, throwing shadows along the old wooden floor as her black locks of hair tossed from side to side.

"No, father," she droned, growing bored of him. Her smile had faded by now; she was dead serious. "Just before the Repentance, you had to choose who you would protect. You chose the villagers, instead of me. On the night of the ritual, when I died, the Malice called out to me and offered me the a choice of my very own."

Sae closed her eyes, imagining what it had felt like when the age-old demon had reached out to touch her for the first time. Just thinking of its voice filled her with a strange peace that she had never known anyone but her sister to provide...a bad sign that she was becoming ever more lost to the darkness.

"It told me that it could give me the power to remain as I am now, forever, so I could await Yae's return," she whispered, full of ecstasy. "However, it also told me that I would need to get my hands dirty in making sure the rest of the village and its people would be unaltered, and that meant adding them to this unending dream. Two choices...Yae, or the villagers."

Ryokan could see his image reflected in his daughter's cold eyes. Sae disregarded this, and voiced the horror of her reasoning as if it was trivial:

"So you see, father, I simply chose to keep Yae...and sacrifice all of you."

For a panic-stricken moment, Ryokan mistook Sae's dirge as a threat and raised the camera defensively, expecting her attack to follow. When Sae just glared at him, however, he decided to lower it again. He hadn't forgotten that his daughter had saved his life, and she could sense that he wanted to know why.

A cold reality greeted the old man. He finally felt that he understood Sae's actions. She _was_ malevolent, even if she wouldn't admit it, but he sensed that Sae really did believe her own explanation. She didn't see the Repentance as a massacre of revenge – merely the darkest embodiment of life's harshest lesson: you can't have everything your way.

Her lips pulled into a chilling smile as she continued.

"Don't you see, father; this is the lesson of our village," she shrugged her shoulders calmly. "We really don't need all our loved ones to be happy – just the one that we love most. The one that we're destined to spend the rest of our existence with. Can you guess who that is for me?"

Ryokan and Sae both knew that she was referring to Yae, so he didn't answer her question. Sae began to twitch eagerly as she wrapped up her monologue with the one reason that she had let the old man live this long in the first place.

"Speaking of Yae, it's time that I told you why I saved your life. I can't leave the village because of this curse. I'm also not patient and don't want to wait for Yae to come of her own accord. So you're going to help me. Find Yae...and return here with her."

Ryokan released a breath he didn't know he had been holding when Sae finished. He had been dreading that _this_ was his daughter's reason for saving his life, but it hardly surprised him. Even now, after she had taken her revenge against the village, Sae was still consumed by her desire to be reunited with Yae. However, the same curse that had helped her kill all of her former friends now shackled her inside All Gods' borders, making it impossible for her to hunt Yae down on her own. Instead, she would make her father do it. Except for Sae herself, he knew more about Yae than anyone, and could probably bring her back to the village...if he wanted to.

But this was _Yae_...the beloved daughter that he should have protected and guided in the first place. If she were reunited with Sae now, what would happen next? Ryokan had seen her _kill_ "Yae" in his last vision, and there was no doubt in his mind that the real Yae would await this fate if he brought her back. It depended on what Yae and Sae said to each other, but the father of these two girls didn't want to risk it. Yae was his only surviving family, and his experiences with Itsuki, Chitose, and Mio had made him realize that he couldn't lose her.

_"I can't agree to this,"_ Ryokan thought to himself, trying to keep the doubt from showing up on his face. Sae continued to watch him, waiting on pins and needles for a reply.

Looking into her short-fused eyes, however, told Ryokan that he couldn't simply refuse to do what Sae was asking of him. Doing so would infuriate her and crush his chances of avoiding a fight. Instead, Ryokan thought the situation over and decided to rationalize an excuse.

"Sae, even if I wanted to help you, the fire I started outside has probably blocked all the exits by now. I have no way to escape this place," Ryokan said, turning a head to the door he had entered through. It wasn't even a lie; the fire had probably destroyed half his house by now. Sae, however, didn't look worried and simply floated to the door, disappearing through it. Confused, Ryokan walked to the Rope Palace's exit and opened the door, to see what she was up to. Outside, the sky was now thick with flame and smoke, and the fire had reached the balcony across from him. Its spread was slowing, though, and the blaze still needed to cross the long walkway leading to his location. There was still time.

Sae hovered not far from him, staring at the nearest wooden wall that lied along the twin paths. One of her pale hands gripped the thick, crimson rope that was still wrapped around her waist, with a noose tied at the other end. Utterly lost as to what she was trying to do, Ryokan watched as Sae whipped her arm behind her back, the rope lashing through the sky with it. As it arced through the air, the rope gained length, stretching to around five meters. It also lost its transparency, taking on a solid red color. Ryokan didn't know what this meant...until Sae brought the nightmarish whip crashing down on the wooden wall. To his horror, it made _solid contact_, smashing the wall to pieces on impact and exposing the open river, the same one that ran through most of the village, on the other side.

Ryokan staggered back into the Rope Palace, barely breathing from the shock of what he'd seen. What Sae had just done should've been impossible. Granted, the old man had been "touched" by plenty of spirits during his time in the village, namely when they had tried to strangle him. Akane, Kiyomi, Kanehira...they had all done it, but none of them had been able to simply _destroy_ solid matter like this. Was this the power Sae had inherited from the Malice?

"You should be able to swim," Sae stared at Ryokan from her position outside, an unamused and bitter expression on her face. She was losing patience, and Ryokan was losing hope. Now he would have to simply tell Sae that he wasn't willing to help her. His chances of survival had plummeted. Would _anything_ he could say satisfy her?

_"No,"_ Ryokan realized with horror. Sae would never stop; she was relentless and would keep insisting that he brought Yae back, no matter what he said. There was nothing else that he could offer her, nothing that he had that she wanted. Or _maybe_...there was one more thing he could try.

"Take my life instead of Yae's," Ryokan spoke his request boldly, despite the reality of what he was asking. Now more nervous than ever, the old man began to tremble as if caught in a winter blizzard, but this seemed like a suitable backup plan to him. As an alternate to exorcising her spirit, the former Ceremony Master knew that her curse would cease to exist if the tormented soul was appeased. He knew that, deep down, Sae was being driven by revenge, not love. As the man who had personally seen to her execution, he was far more responsible for her misery than Yae. So if he offered his life in her place, maybe Yae could be spared.

"Neither living nor dead are you worth as much as her," Sae shattered Ryokan's hopes with a brief reply was not only condescending, but downright _cold_, and she wouldn't even look at her father as she turned away to stare out at the village's river, dreaming naively of Yae's return.

But Ryokan wouldn't help her achieve that dream, and now his patience with her was beginning to slip as well. The two of them were nearing the point of no return. Looking down at the camera, he checked the lens' capture circle to make sure it was fully charged.

"Sae...I'm _not_ bringing Yae back to this place," the old man's tone gained in force. "She's my only surviving family, and I won't hurt her anymore than I have already. I know what you want; you want Yae to perform the Crimson Sacrifice with you, even if that means that _you_ need to strangle _her_, instead of the reverse. I won't let you do it."

"Watch your words, father. I can kill you as easily as I killed all the others," Sae hissed, finally turning to look him in the eyes. "And why not bring Yae back, anyway? Before the Repentance, you were so eager to safeguard this village's rituals, that you actually traveled to the Kuze Shrine and risked death in order to do it. You were determined to keep Yae and myself on track to performing our ritual, and when Yae tried to run away with me, you tried to stop her. I'll never be able to hate you because of that. You did everything you could to help me become one with Yae, even if you failed in the end."

While Sae talked, Ryokan continued to prepare himself, knowing that their "negotiations", if they could even be called that, had failed. The camera's mechanisms whined audibly, warning him that she was vulnerable. She was still standing just outside the Rope Palace's doors, in a clear setting and easy to see...and she wasn't expecting him to attack.

"But now...", Sae still spoke, oblivious to Ryokan's true determination, "...now that I'm handing you a golden opportunity to correct your mistake, are you really going to refuse to take it? What happened to the father I knew?"

Staring at his daughter irritably, Ryokan realized he could give Sae the full answer to her question. He could explain every detail of how Chitose, Itsuki, and others had changed his outlook, and how he had straightened out his priorities. However, he didn't have the energy for that, so he decided to abbreviate it to something that fit the circumstances better.

"I don't have any time left to talk, Sae, so let this answer suffice: I became a _**real**_ father!" the old man shouted as he raised the camera and aimed it at her face. Startled, Sae tried to disappear, but Ryokan had the element of surprise and fired the flash, ejecting a tsunami of light straight at her. "And as your father, I _won't_ allow you to continue this rampage any longer!"

Seconds passed and the temporary illumination faded from around him. Emboldened face unchanging, Ryokan's eyes gave the area outside a once-over, looking for any sign of his daughter. There was none to be found; the only remaining evidence of Sae's presence was the large hole in the walkway's walls that she had left. The wind whistled outside, carrying its icy chill through the village, not interested in their conflict.

Still worried, Ryokan turned back into the Rope Palace and scanned it for her. There were still no traces...until the double doors slammed shut behind him when he wasn't looking. Their deep thud resounded through the room as an icy chill greater than anything the wind could carry swept over him. His surroundings dimmed, the light of torches being suffocated by his daughter's presence, and a new wave of dread washed over the old man as he readied the camera again.

His surprise attack hadn't vanquished Sae – it had merely angered her.

_"You're right, father – you don't have any time left,"_ when he heard her voice, Ryokan swiveled on his feet and faced Sae, who was watching him from beneath the shadows cast by one of the six pillars that supported the room's ceiling. Without a second of hesitation, Sae raised her arm and hurled the crimson sash at the man she had once called "father".

_"No time at all."_

xxXXxx

Nope, there's no reasoning with Sae, I'm afraid.

The next chapter will be entirely devoted to the battle between these two, the longest and most intense of the story. Most of it is finished already, so the next update _should_ be available soon, but take that with a grain of salt since I've had trouble updating regularly in the past.

Thanks for reading, and reviews will be appreciated.


	32. Chapter 32: Father and Daughter, Part 2

Hello again, everyone. After such a long hiatus, I've finally got the next chapter for all of you. Major thanks to all those who have stuck with the story for this long, and endured my ridiculously long hiatuses.

Sorry if this chapter's quality doesn't seem quite up to par. I've been busy in school so it's been a long time since I practiced writing. Feel free to point out any problems in the reviews, or by PM.

Thanks to OnnaMusha, Fan of Games, RCD SERIES 9, and an unnamed Guest for reviewing the last chapter. Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 32: Father and Daughter, Part 2

Sae cackled madly, her ceremonial sash flying toward Ryokan with the speed of a tempest. It was all he could do to leap awkwardly to the ground at his side as Sae brought it down across the floor where he had been standing, cleaving it in two and sending splintered shards flying. Ryokan grunted as a few struck him, but forced himself up quickly to counterattack. He was too late as Sae cast another swing of her rope, laughing wildly as it whistled through the air towards him. Again, he barely dodged, ducking under the rope as it sailed over him. One of the six pillars in the altar room took the hit instead, and with a deep thud, a slab of marble was sent flying in chunks against the wall, fortunately not in Ryokan's direction. The pure shock behind Sae's blows was deafening and rumbled up to the room's vaulted ceiling, shaking the torture harness suspended above them.

Groaning dizzily, Ryokan stood up and gazed at the pillar, now broken into two sections, that Sae had destroyed. Looking around, he didn't see her, even though she'd had him off balance. He wondered why she would disappear now, of all times, but in any case, it gave him a moment to think up a strategy.

Not that it mattered; Sae's ridiculous strength made strategy meaningless. The old man had known this would be a tough fight, but that noose of hers could extend almost twenty feet out _and_ smash through stone. With something like that assaulting him, he would be dead soon, no question. There had to be a way around it, and he needed to find it before she came back.

Suddenly, Ryokan's senses picked up as he realized that he was being watched. Scouring each of the hexagonal room's six corners, he saw Sae peering out at him from the darkness. She reacted to his awareness and raised the cord to strike again, sending it flying straight at his face. The old man threw himself onto the ground as the rope passed him by, its looped end snagging around a jagged chunk of the broken pillar behind him. Sae had been ready for him to dodge this time and grinned devilishly. With a sharp tug of the crimson flail, the rope flew back toward Ryokan's exposed body from behind, carrying the ballistic stone with it. With no time to rise to his feet, Ryokan tried to use his legs to push himself along the ground, out of harm's way. It was too late this time, however, and the ballistic stone struck his waist, knocking him from one end of the altar to the other.

"Too bad your camera can't protect you from debris," Sae chided as she retracted her menacing armament, flinging the chunk of marble off its looped end.

Cringing in pain, Ryokan rubbed his hands along his waist, checking for permanent injuries that were fortunately not there. As he rose unsteadily onto his feet, the old man got an idea. The camera...if it could exorcise spirits, maybe it could eliminate their weapons too. Weapons such as Eichiro's sword, the staves of the veiled priests, _or_ _the red cord Sae was using_.

"Die,"Sae commanded as she initiated another vertical slash in her father's direction. Too sore to dodge again, Ryokan aimed the camera up at the descending cord and hit the flash. The portion of Sae's weapon exposed to the light dissolved into a cloud of red fumes that drifted toward the ground harmlessly, leaving the rope a mere five feet long. Seeing this gave Ryokan some hope; with a way to counter her weapon, he knew he could fight back now.

Frustrated, Sae disappeared from view again. It was the second time that she had left him alone for a moment, when she had no reason to. Ryokan wondered what might be driving her away and looked around for her again. He didn't notice that, right beneath his feet, the red mist from Sae's destroyed sash was drifting around in search of her as well.

Theorizing that Sae was vulnerable right now, Ryokan took a leap of faith and ran from the room's more brightly lit center, into the darkness of its borders. He needed his eyes adjusted to the dark, if he was going to have a chance of finding Sae quickly. Thinking this was a good time to strike, Sae moved from the safety of her hiding place and tried to surprise Ryokan by attacking him through one of the walls. However, she didn't use her rope; instead, Sae simply lunged through the wall and tried to break his neck by hand.

Ryokan was ready for her. His reflexes had been honed with the practice of having fought dozens of other spirits to get this far, and as soon as he saw her, he dealt a fierce blow to her body with the camera, catching her mid-attack. Sae screamed and fell back through the wall, only to reappear immediately in the center of the room, glaring at him.

_"So much for her reluctance to attack," _Ryokan thought bitterly, but he realized that this was the first time Sae had tried to fight with her own hands. Around Sae's waist, the red sash was still useless, its shortened end tattered from contact with the camera's light.

"Now I understand," Ryokan said, a small smile appearing on his face. He walked back toward the center of the room to face her. "You can't use that rope of yours anymore, and you're afraid to fight me without it."

Sae continued to glare at him, but she didn't look worried. Ryokan's confident smile vanished as she started to walk slowly toward him. Then she disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, and reappeared a foot in front of him!

_"Wrong."_

Sae flailed her arms at her father, clawing at his neck, but missed and grabbed his shoulders instead. Impatient, Sae began constricting him anyway, and Ryokan gasped as the searing pain of ten white hot knives dug deep into his shoulders. His vision began to fade as she pulled the life from him. Recognizing the danger he was in, Ryokan lifted the camera with all his weakening strength. One shot and Sae recoiled, screaming more of anger than of pain as she disappeared. She didn't stay gone for long, though, and reappeared behind him. For a moment, she watched, enjoying the view as Ryokan twitched and grunted in agony. Underneath his kimono, ten black dots had formed where her fingers had held him, and he could feel every last one. It was back to business, though, and Sae grabbed her whipcord with both hands. Having been searching up until now, the red mist floating in the room flew toward her and swirled around her cord, re-solidifying until it had regained its full length.

Despite the intense pain, Ryokan turned to face Sae, and saw with horror that she was already in the process of charging toward him, whipping the cord left and right as she advanced. Panicked, Ryokan tried to stop her attack with a shot from the camera, only to find it still reloading after the last one. With no other choice, Ryokan retreated, sprinting across the room as fast as his tired legs would carry him. Sae had no intention of letting the camera reload and rocketed after him, flaying everything in her path. Before too long, Ryokan ran out of room to retreat. Backed up in one of the room's six corners, Ryokan looked on in terror as Sae cornered him, grinding a support column that stood between them into dust and sparks. Among the sounds of crumbling stone, Ryokan heard the whirring mechanisms of a readied camera. Reflexes alone saved him as he fired a beam of light into Sae's accelerating form, with her deadly rope _inches_ away from decapitating him. Sae wailed in pain and collapsed to the ground. Stepping forward, Ryokan fired another shot, but Sae sank into the floor to avoid the blast.

_This stops whenever you want, father...just find Yae and return her to me._

Ryokan looked around, but didn't see Sae anywhere. He couldn't tell where she was; the room was acting like an amphitheater, making her voice echo from several places at once.

"Listen to yourself – you're treating Yae like your property!" Ryokan shouted back. He aimed the camera at the floor, expecting her to pop through at any second. Maybe keeping her talking could lure her out. At the very least, this gave him a moment to rest, which he direly needed after the beating his old body had taken.

_She's my sister. And she promised to be with me, forever. I won't let her break that promise._

"And _I_ won't let you force her to keep it!" Ryokan shouted. Twitching anxiously, the old man turned to his right where he felt the biting cold of Sae emerging from the shadows, but he didn't have time to aim a shot. He ran to the left just as Sae's hellish flail cracked the floor where he had been standing. Growling irritably, he pushed himself up from the ground, but she was nowhere to be found when he looked through the camera's lens.

Exhausted, Ryokan fell to his knees, gasping for breath and resenting his lack of energy. His body was exhausted and couldn't keep this up, but somehow, he had to fight past it. There were no more clever strategies for him to make use of here. Locked in a single room with his daughter, all he could do was will himself to keep fighting, hoping to the gods that his resolve and stamina were somehow greater than her own.

Sae floated out of the darkness, casting a calm look on her father as she twirled a finger in her hair. There was something haunting about her refusal to take his mortality seriously, but as his former daughter, the weak sense of honor she still held for him was coming in handy. It was probably the only thing keeping her from ripping his head off while he was down.

"You know, father," Sae queried with a little smile, "why should you or Yae fear death? There's power to be found in it."

Ryokan looked her in the eyes and frowned dismissively. His limbs shook as he found his footing, and his strength, once more. "You're only saying that because you weren't strong enough to live, not like Yae!"

"Funny," Sae spoke without humor in her voice, "_you're_ the one who encouraged me to go through with the sacrifice. Death made me strong, but you'll find that out for yourself soon enough."

Sae gripped her deadly weapon and tossed it at Ryokan like a fisherman casting a net. He tried to move out of the way, but the loop at the opposite end of the rope widened and landed around his waist, tightening as Sae pulled back.

"Just stay still for two seconds; I promise I'll make this quick!"

Sae flexed her arms and prepared to tug the rope with all her strength. Ryokan's blood froze; he remembered this from the night of the Repentance, when Sae had used it to shatter a man's neck. Now, with the same rope around his body, she was seconds away from breaking his spine if he didn't do something. Fear overriding caution, Ryokan shoved the camera into his robes, grabbed the rope with both hands and pulled before Sae could. Caught off guard by her father's brazen response, Sae stumbled forward awkwardly, yelling as the rope tugged at her. It stung like hot metal in Ryokan's hands, but he forced himself to hold onto it, dragging his daughter's rope-bound waist forward, getting her in range of the camera.

"I don't care how strong you are, Sae," Ryokan growled, gritting his teeth as he continued to pull the rope. _"I won't let you win!"_

As soon as Sae was within a couple of meters, Ryokan released the rope, drew the Camera Obscura, and hit the flash. Her body shimmered translucently as the light enveloped her. Panicking, Sae shrieked and jerked her sash to one side, carrying Ryokan with it. He skidded along the wood floor as Sae and her rope vanished again.

Sae watched from afar as her bruised father struggled to his feet. "Can't you even see how weak you're becoming?" Sae chided. "Give up. The uncertainty of life is nothing to fight for."

Ryokan pulled himself up and looked for Sae. She was nowhere to be found; resting out of his reach, no doubt.

"The uncertainty of life is what makes it worth living," Ryokan argued, taking his own opportunity to rest.

"Not for me, and not for Yae, either," Sae replied calmly, appearing before her father with a cloud of red mist surrounding her. Ryokan fumbled with the camera and fired it, but the mist obscured the camera's flash before it could reach her. It seemed she was set on chewing him out before their time was finished.

"A year ago, Yae, Itsuki, and I were all happy," Sae continued, slipping into her memories of the past. Her manic smile curled into a frown. "It wasn't until Yae got it in her head that we needed to run away and start over, that things started to go wrong."

"Sae, Yae was NOT going to leave you!" Ryokan pleaded, pitying that Sae's trust in her sister had gone so sour. "She loved you and would've stayed with you for the rest of your life. That's the truth."

Sae merely shook her head, an icy tear slipping down her cheek. "Then why did she leave me on the day of the ritual, without so much as coming back for me? Even if I had escaped with her, who knows what else could've come between us? The world has never been a kind place, you of all people would know that."

Ryokan readied the camera as Sae broke from her red mist to strike again. She lifted her weapon overhead and brought it down, but Ryokan avoided it with a hasty sidestep and retaliated with another shot. The blast staggered Sae. Spurned on by frustration, she recovered instantly and vanished into a cloud of black smoke. She appeared above him, diving down as she hurled the cord.

Ryokan's heart raced as he raised the camera in reaction and fired. Light surged from the lens, launching Sae through the altar room's ceiling.

"So let me get this straight," Ryokan shouted in a disapproving tone, "you think you and Yae would be better off if you simply _stopped_ moving into the future, with nothing to change your relationship? Is that what your curse is really about?"

"Change is where all the misery in my life originated," Sae's somber voice echoed. "It was my greatest enemy and the village's greatest weakness. Fortunately, the Repentance got rid of it."

Ryokan tried to retort, but found himself unable to speak. A sharp pain was coursing through Ryokan's waistline, where Sae's sash had been wrapped around him. Exhausted from fighting, the old man fell to his knees, trying in vain to catch his breath.

Sae took advantage of Ryokan's momentary weakness and ghosted through the floor behind him. Startled, Ryokan tried to push himself away from her, but Sae was far too fast an grabbed him, wrapping her pale arms around his neck. Ryokan gasped for breath as Sae's icy chill coursed through his body, stirring every ache that he'd ever accumulated during his time in the village. She whispered in his ear as she choked the life out of him.

"There's no uncertainty with the Repentance's blessing, daddy. You know exactly where you'll go when you die, and for eternity you'll live the same day of your life over and over, blissfully unaware of your own mortality. The future will never come. The pain of losing your village will never come. Even death can't threaten you, which is good, because you're minutes away from yours."

Ryokan ignored Sae's lecturing and fought with all his strength to break her hold. Losing any sense of aim, he pointed the Camera Obscura up and fired it randomly. The poorly aimed shot only angered Sae, who took Ryokan by the shoulders and slammed him into the ground, driving his stomach straight through a jagged floorboard that had been created earlier in the fight. The old man screamed in pain one last time and struggled on the ground as Sae floated near him, wearing a wicked smile on her face. The injury was too much, and within a minute, the old man had blacked out.

* * *

When Ryokan managed to awaken, half conscious and barely alive, the first thing he felt was his blood pouring out of his wound, seeping into the cracks between the floorboards around him. Sae came into view above him, gazing somberly at her dying father.

"Why?" Sae asked, her tone soft. "Why didn't you just listen to me? All you had to do was bring Yae back. We could've been a family again."

Not having the strength to get up or even reach for the camera, Ryokan struggled just to speak. "We stopped being a family the day I lost sight of what was important," he grieved, his frown deepening. "I used to think like you, Sae. I was single minded and obsessed with past traditions, and the Malice used this to poison my ability to lead this village safely."

Ryokan wasn't above begging and pleaded with Sae. "Please don't make the same mistakes I did. You deserve to be with Yae again, but this isn't the way. You won't be at peace here. People will venture into this village and be sucked into our pain. They'll try to break your curse before it consumes them, just as I did," Ryokan warned, thinking back to the two girls that had accidentally given Ryokan guidance in his own journey. "I don't know whether or not they will ever succeed, but are you really so lost that you can't see the misery that your curse will cause?"

Sae's pity turned to seething bitterness as she glared down at her father. She moved behind him and pulled him off the floorboard, with no regard for his painful injury, and moved him onto a relatively undamaged patch of floor.

"I'm sorry, father," she spoke, "but I can't risk anyone take advantage of me again. Not you, not the villagers, not fate itself. When Yae finally comes back for me, everything will be as it should. With you joining me in death, nothing is left to stop her from keeping her promise. We will all be together..._forever._"

Sae knelt at her father's side and clasped both hands around his throat. His rough skin and irregular pulse felt unnatural to her, but she ignored it out of courtesy.

"I'll relieve you of your pain, now. Do you have any last words?"

Ryokan stared up at Sae as a loud crack echoed through the room without warning. Startled, Sae looked around for the source of what sounded like glass breaking, but didn't find it. She turned back toward her father to see him _smiling_, as he reached into his robes with one hand. When he pulled it back out, the broken fragments of a glimmering stone that Itsuki had given to him after the Repentance rested in his palm.

"Only two," Ryokan replied to Sae, his voice steady and strong. _"Stone mirror!"_

Without warning, Ryokan rolled away from Sae, breaking her grasp on his throat. He rose off the floor with renewed energy, the pain in his body receding. Even his injury wasn't bleeding!

Stunned silent by Ryokan's improbable recovery, Sae didn't move as Ryokan all but shoved the camera into her face and fired. The young woman was thrown across the room, screaming in pain as her face dissolved into a cloud of purple smoke. Rising with a furious scream, Sae turned and lunged at her father with blinding speed, both hands reaching for his neck. The old man jumped back with uncanny dexterity and aimed one final, decisive shot as Sae's fingers grazed his neck again. An explosion of light filled the altar room as an overwhelmed Sae was sucked into the Camera Obscura. The light faded and the room fell dark, leaving a lone, battered Ceremony Master as the battle's close victor.

Ryokan collapsed back down into a sitting position, taking deep breaths, pondering his victory, and his own near death. By some divine grace, he had lived through Sae's wrath, with help from the stone mirror that Itsuki had given him. Smiling weakly, the old man re-examined its broken, dark purple shards, picking them up and allowing them to slide back out of his wrinkled hand. Unfortunately, the stone mirror couldn't heal physical injuries. It had seen to stopping the bleeding and the pain, but his chest wound was still there, and that meant it would eventually start bleeding again.

It also meant that he was still short of breath. Before he even knew it, Ryokan's eyes had slid closed as his weariness overtook him. He drifted in and out of consciousness, nearly slipping into a coma before the smell of smoke wafting toward his nose finally reawakened him. Struggling to his feet, Ryokan opened the door leading outside and looked to see the signature hues of a large fire heading toward the altar room. It was the signal fire that Ryokan had created to attract Sae to him; it had consumed all of Kurosawa house by this point, and was rapidly advancing to swallow the house's last room.

Ryokan stood defiant, oblivious to the danger. "Thank you, Itsuki," he muttered into the darkness. "Your stone mirror saved my life, and now I can uphold my promise to end this curse, once and for all."

Ryokan stared down at the camera in his hands, which housed Sae along with every other specter that Ryokan had conquered with it. "It's just one more walk to the Hellish Abyss now, where I'll be able to return you to where the curse originated. You, Itsuki, and I...together, we can do it," Ryokan stared at the battered, dented double doors which led to the Hellish Abyss.

"Easy," the old man reassured himself, hoping sincerely that no final surprises were waiting for him in the caverns below. Eager to see his journey finished, the old man left the room and set off for the Hellish Abyss, steeled for what would be either a simple walk, or a final fight for survival...

...and so did a single crimson butterfly, which fluttered in after him.

* * *

A couple of things before I leave you all.

1. For those who don't remember when Itsuki gave Ryokan the stone mirror, it was near the end of chapter 20. It's been about a year and a half since I uploaded that chapter, so I understand if people forgot.

2. The next chapter is supposed to be the last one, but I might break it into two if it turns out to be too long. There will also be an epilogue, but it will be uploaded at the same time as the last chapter, so you won't have to wait any extra time for it.

See you all at the next update, and happy holidays. Reviews will be appreciated.


	33. Chapter 33: Save Our Village

Hello and welcome back, everyone. It took another long update time to get here, but we've finally reached the true finale of Ryokan's journey. Hope you all enjoy it.

Thanks to OnnaMusha, RCD SERIES 9, and Fan Of Games for reviewing the last chapter.

* * *

Chapter 33: Save Our Village

The journey down to the chamber of the Hellish Abyss was longer and more difficult than Ryokan remembered it being. The sloping hallways were marred by damage from the Repentance, and some had caved in completely, leaving Ryokan with the arduous task of squeezing himself through any gaps he could find in the rubble. Each and every stone that his body was forced against would press against his wounded stomach, slowing his progress and making his body recoil with pain. Long after its use, the stone mirror was starting to wear off, leaving Ryokan with limited strength and a slow but steady loss of blood.

Ryokan pressed on, attempting to ignore the injury. He took the uneven ground one slow step at a time, focusing on righting the wrongs of his family to make the time pass faster. His determined thoughts caused adrenaline to pump through his body, taking some of the pain away.

Ryokan noticed a faint red glow illuminating the path behind him when he reached a left turn that led deeper into the earth. A Crimson Butterfly was following him, keeping its distance out of respect, or fear. The old man didn't know why, but he had enough on his mind between his dimming life and the fear of whether or not his plan to save the village would work, so he ignored it. Scanning his surroundings, Ryokan also couldn't help but worry about the Mourners that usually guarded these tunnels. In life, they would have been standing at attention along the path, but none of their spirits were visible ahead. Were they sneaking up on him, waiting to strike, or had something scared them off? Both possibilities worried Ryokan.

Finally, the Ceremony Master made it to the final cavern that stood between him and the Hellish Abyss. The haunting beauty of this ritual chamber had left the place, its many candles doused and scattered by debris that had fallen from the ceiling during the rumbling of the abyss. The central platform was cracked and sat lopsided in the center of the cavern, forcing Ryokan to brace himself as he walked merely to avoid toppling over the low edge. He arrived at the opposite end of the chamber to find that the red torii gate marking the final descent to the Hellish Abyss was still intact, surprisingly resilient against the fallen stones that lay around it. The chamber beyond didn't daunt Ryokan, however, and with no more than a few seconds of thought as to what would happen next, he passed under it and entered the final chamber.

The area surrounding the Hellish Abyss didn't feel any more (or less) dreadful than it ever had. The three lanterns surrounding it were still standing, orange sparks occasionally crackling from the fire in each. The pit itself waited patiently for him, its gaping entrance glowing with a dark radiance.

The old man had just started to walk cautiously toward the lip of the abyss when a deafening roar escaped it and reverberated through the cavern, forcing Ryokan to his knees as he protected his ears from the sound. The cavern shook violently, knocking the lanterns over and spilling their contents in glowing piles as a _massive_ arm reached out of the pit and grabbed its edge. A second arm soon followed, and Ryokan's eyes widened in horror as the full size of a colossal creature rose out of the Hellish Abyss. The grotesque monster towered almost twenty feet above him, its flesh a writing mass of tortured spirits. All previously trapped in the abyss' depths, they screamed and moaned as they crawled over each other in an attempt to take a single form.

Ryokan stepped back cautiously. He recognized the signs of a rare and deadly demon straight out of village legend. Called an "Utsuro", it was born from the collected hatred of every Kusabi, Crimson Sacrifice, and other vengeful spirit that had ever been cast into the Hellish Abyss. Twitching angrily, the Utsuro finally achieved its desired shape, its many bodies realigning to form a distinct torso. There were no legs that Ryokan could see; instead, a broad waist served as the creature's lowest point, blocking most of the Hellish Abyss that it towered out of. Sharp, jagged teeth protruded from its broad mouth, as did two curved, black horns from the top of its otherwise featureless scalp. Large, red eyes that appeared all the brighter against its pitch-dark body stared down, locked on Ryokan in an intense glare.

"This isn't right," thought the old man. He had been informed of many Utsuro in his tomes and books, but this one was larger and more intimidating than what he had read about. It didn't seem coincidental that a monster like this could rise up to oppose him, not without being prompted to. The old man's heart raced as he began to realize that the Malice, the demon he had ridden himself of in the Kureha Shrine, was back. It had reappeared in the place where its power was greatest, to challenge him one final time.

"I offer you one chance to surrender the camera to me, old man," the Malice snarled, its deep voice resonating from within the Utsuro's gaping mouth. "A rare opportunity for your heresy to be forgotten, to serve me as you once did."

Ryokan stared the monster down, his face bold, suppressing his innermost fears. "Not before I've returned Sae to the place where she was created," he retorted, glaring bitterly. "You would never forgive my disobedience unless you were afraid for your own sake...which means that my plan may succeed after all."

Despite his ominous gut injury, Ryokan was becoming more confident. The Malice didn't seem bothered by this, as its Utsuro cracked a sneering grin that burned his eyes.

"Perhaps you're right," the Malice admitted, to Ryokan's surprise. "Maybe you have some hope to cling to, after all. But there's still one problem you haven't considered."

"What's that?" Ryokan asked.

"Well, we both know that your chances of victory here are slim," the Malice mused, its Utsuro baring two rows of jagged teeth impatiently. "But if you do cast me away, you'll have a choice to make. You can stop Sae from further damaging the world by casting her into the Hellish Abyss, sealing her within it. But sealing an evil spirit isn't the same as freeing it. It'll free the other villagers, sure, but you can _never_ free Sae from her own curse, unless you face justice, and perish in the same way she did. So even if you win, you'll never be able to release Sae unless you sacrifice yourself, right here."

Ryokan's brow furrowed as he listened to the beast, camera clutched tightly in both hands.

"Actually, it's more than that," the Malice continued. "When Sae was stained by my power, she didn't just want other people to die with her. No, she wanted them to _suffer_; to know the pain of being trapped, separated forever from her family. That means you'll stay cursed when this is finished, doomed to wander the earth forever while the rest of your village moves on...unless you give up now."

"After all you and I have endured together, I'm amazed that you can still underestimate me," Ryokan replied, calm and collected. "It wasn't long ago that I would've made any sacrifice to protect the people I cared about. I can suffer one more, knowing that this time, the sacrifice won't be in vain."

Staring down, Ryokan placed a hand on his bleeding torso, pulling it up to see it covered in crimson fluid. "Besides, my survival was never an option. Now…shall we?" he finished, raising the camera.

The Utsuro's smile deepened, reflecting a little admiration along with the bloodlust it felt. "I admire men who can face death with dignity," the Malice said. "It's the one concept that I never understood, being forcibly imprisoned in an afterlife as cruel as Sae's death. I almost regret having to kill you, but the more I think of my impending freedom, the more I realize that I _don't_!" the Malice growled, its calm facade cracking as the Utsuro shook the cavern with a primal roar. _"My days of being trapped are over!"_

"And so are mine," Ryokan said solemnly, taking an anticipatory breath.

All hell broke loose as the Utsuro raised a mighty fist above Ryokan and sent it flying down. The old man, startled by the sudden attack, ran to the right as fast as he could as the arm crushed the ground where he had been standing. Following his reflexes, Ryokan raised the camera and countered with a blast of light, but the creature was far too large to be affected, and barely twitched when the light hit it. Against every ache in his body, Ryokan managed to keep sprinting, dodging and weaving around the rectangular pit as the Malice rained punches down around him, sending tremors through the ground as it fumbled to finish him off. The creature's fury led to clumsiness, but Ryokan couldn't keep this pace up forever.

When he was too tired to keep running, he resorted to the Camera Obscura. A shot fired at one of the creature's descending wrists was enough to make it recoil in pain, stopping its attacks for a brief time. A flash of clarity struck Ryokan as he realized that he could still fight the Utsuro despite its size. He merely had to focus on its weak spots; a creature this large had to be vulnerable somewhere.

Ryokan raised the camera and angled the shot upward. The shutter fired, its light nailing the creature in the head and knocking it against the wall of the Hellish Abyss. Now _that_ was the kind of hit Ryokan needed to score.

The Utsuro screeched in anger and swept the ground around the Hellish Abyss with its massive arms. Ryokan managed to jump over them, but this time the Malice was ready for a counterattack. Reaching down with one of its massive arms, the Utsuro struck Ryokan with a backhand that sent his body flying. He hit a nearby wall, hard, and screamed with pain as he felt the snapping of a bone in his ribcage. There was no stone mirror to save him from the injury, but he didn't need one. Breathing heavily, the old man got up and charged back toward the Hellish Abyss.

The Malice was too smart to let Ryokan get close and attacked him again, firing an array of ghostly skulls from the Utsuro's mouth. Ryokan raised the camera, lined each of them up in the viewfinder as they descended toward him, and banished all of them with a single shot. He was back to running, more slowly due to the agony in his chest, but still determined to get close to the creature and find a vulnerable area to hit. The Utsuro wouldn't allow this, and swept its arms along the cavern floor once again, creating a tornado-force wind that knocked Ryokan off his feet and pushed him back along the ground. The Malice cackled insanely as Ryokan wiped dirt from his eyes and rose once again.

The Utsuro cupped its hands and rubbed them together. An unnatural glow began to form between them, and Ryokan charged forward in the hope of stopping whatever it was doing. Aiming at the creature's wrists, Ryokan filled the viewfinder with another blast of light, prompting the creature to pull its hands back in pain. Trembling angrily, the Utsuro roared and slammed its fists into the ground, causing the ground to shake enough to knock Ryokan off his feet. As the old man rose and turned back toward the Utsuro, he saw with horror that it had already fired another cluster of pale skulls from its mouth. Darting back, Ryokan banished a few with the camera and ducked to avoid those that still remained.

Waiting for the camera to load another shot gave Ryokan a quick moment to re-examine his injuries. They were getting worse; judging from the blurring of his vision, he was mere minutes away from blacking out, and his attacks had only succeeded in chiseling some of the monster's chitin away, exposing bulging masses underneath. Determined to aggravate the damage, Ryokan advanced toward the creature, charging the camera by keeping the wounded areas in view. As soon as he was close enough, the Utsuro unfolded one of its fists and tried to flatten Ryokan against the ground. A charged flash into the creature's damaged midsection interrupted the attack and threw the creature off balance. It recovered quickly and cupped its hands together, charging a flaming ball of light between them. Unable to dodge effectively in his state, Ryokan brought the camera up instead and waited for the right moment.

The diffusion of energy quickly grew too large to avoid, but Ryokan saw his chance when the monster pulled its arms in to hurl the blast forward. One shot from the Camera Obscura was all it took to crack the glowing orb held by the creature, precipitating a violent eruption as it exploded. Ryokan fell back in surprise, covering his eyes desperately as blinding light filled the cavern. The Utsuro's screams of pain led Ryokan to believe that he had gained ground, maybe even won the fight...but then the screaming stopped, and Ryokan's pride was replaced with horror as he heard a ballistic strike slice the air in front of him. With his body in a prone state and his faculties dulled by blood loss, the old man was too slow to save himself as a jagged, black apendage rushed forth from the void and pierced straight through his chest.

In a reasonable world, the attack would've killed him instantly. The fatal blow had missed his heart, however, and Ryokan opened his eyes again. It was all he could do; the pain was intolerable enough, but it was the freezing cold washing over Ryokan that rendered his muscles useless. He could only stare in bewilderment, searching for the reason that his luck had soured so quickly.

"Appropriate, isn't it?" the Malice mocked, its voice suddenly calm and placid. "I was going to simply crush you while you were blinded, but this reminded me of the Cutting Rituals that used to sustain me."

As the dust around the Hellish Abyss settled, Ryokan saw the Utsuro looming over him, with the jagged remains of its vaporized right arm buried in his body. The deranged creature had used it as a spear, thrown with deadly accuracy by its only intact arm.

"But…how did you…? How could you recover so quickly?" Ryokan asked, his mind still unbelieving.

"I knew you would target my last attack with your camera," the Malice explained serenely. "It was a ticking time bomb in the hands of your enemy; how could you resist? That's why I memorized your location before the explosion blinded both of us, and struck when you least expected it. Recover _quickly_? I never had to recover at all."

Ryokan uttered one last pained scream as the Utsuro grabbed the spear and ripped it out of Ryokan's body. "I've won," the Malice droned as Ryokan's vision failed. "It was always going to end this way. Desperate as you were to absolve yourself of guilt, it was almost too easy to lead you into my trap. Sleep well, Ceremony Master."

Ryokan was clinging to life, his heart struggling to provide vital fluids to organs that no longer worked. The Utsuro could simply leave him there and he would be dead in no time, but the Malice was feeling proud of itself and wanted to finish him personally. The Utsuro reached for Ryokan with its intact arm and closed its fingers around him. Before it could pick him up, however, a dim, red light at the cavern entrance broke the darkness. It grew brighter and brighter, catching the Malice's attention.

Before he knew it, Ryokan found himself freed from the monster's grasp as his field of vision was re-illuminated by dazzling lights. The echo of a new struggle and the roars of an infuriated Utsuro reached him through his buzzing ears.

"What are you doing?" he could hear the Malice growl, either at the Utsuro or the benevolent obstruction keeping it at bay. Ryokan's bloodshot eyes opened as a sharp gasp of breath filled his only working lung. He was in agony, barely able to breath, but his blurred vision eventually focused on the glowing of a singly Crimson Butterfly perched on top of the camera, which rested in front of him. Looking up, he found that no less than a dozen butterflies had followed him into the cavern, with _hundreds_ more arriving through the garishly illuminated entrance. Those that had arrived were embroiled in a battle to distract the Utsuro from its target. They fluttered around its head and scratched at its face and hands, leaving trails of light in the air that resembled an ethereal cage. Some of them were even _exploding_, creating brilliant flashes of red light that startled both the beast and Ryokan himself. Were they sacrificing themselves for _him_?!

"Get away from me…I said_…get away right now!"_ the Malice roared. The vicious Utsuro thrashed violently and fired hundreds of flaming skulls from its mouth, feverishly defending as the horde buzzed around it. Several skulls found their targets and knocked butterflies out of the sky, but the diminished swarm was reckless and continued to attack. Even the butterfly perched on Ryokan's camera was doing its part, beating its wings violently to get his attention. This was his last chance; he couldn't let the spirit's sacrifices be in vain.

_"Enough of this!"_ the Malice roared as the enraged Utsuro snapped both its arms in an overhead arc, creating an eruption of force that pushed everything away from it. Ryokan recoiled as the cavern shook and Crimson Butterflies were sent flying away from the creature in red streaks.

"_You must die!"_ the Malice bellowed as the Utsuro's arm whipped toward him. The old man lunged forward and grabbed the camera just as the Utsuro's hand came down around him. Grasping the ground where Ryokan lied, it lifted him up and swallowed everything whole, dirt and all.

* * *

When Ryokan opened his eyes, he found himself floating in some sort of limbo, surrounded by milky gray mists. He was still alive; was this the Utsuro's stomach?

Struggling to breath with his single lung, Ryokan could barely sense that he was being watched. The cursed spirits that had congealed into the Utsuro were surrounding him, all watching with contempt and hatred for him and his village. They dared not attack him, though, for they knew someone else wanted to.

A primal roar shocked Ryokan's senses as a pale copy of himself descended toward him from above. The Malice, materializing as a dark, skeletal version of Ryokan just as it had done before, cut through the mists and wrapped its unforgiving hands around Ryokan's throat, its burning red eyes locked on him in a murderous glare.

"_Why_?!" the Malice asked as it choked the life out of him, both tumbling through the Utsuro's insides as they struggled. "Why would the sacrifices come to your aid?"

Ryokan was wheezing desperately, unable to answer even if he wanted to. The old man reflexively grabbed at his throat to free himself from the attacker's grasp, but his hands passed throught the Malice's helplessly, and he was too weak to shake the attacker off. His only hope was the camera, which had been with him when he was swallowed and had to be here somewhere. As his chest and head throbbed from lack of oxygen, Ryokan thrashed and kicked with all his might, rocking himself and the Malice through the Utsuro's insides as he waved his arms in search of his salvation.

"Those _things_ were sacrificed to me!" the Malice continued its tirade, blind with anger to what Ryokan was trying to do. "They were supposed to serve and fear _me_!"

In a split second, Ryokan felt the moment of truth arrive as cold metal brushed his left hand. He barely grabbed the camera by its lens as the two combatants tumbled past it, and hurriedly raised it as he had done so many times before. The Malice's eyes widened in shock, but it was too late to stop what was coming as Ryokan hammered the flash. A burst of light erupted in front of him as the Malice was sent flying away, clutching at its face and screaming in unearthly tones as black plumes of acrid smoke dissolved away from it.

"Those…things," Ryokan groaned, his voice a tired yet decisive croak, "were my friends and family".

A second shot washed the Malice's skin away, revealling a withered, ashen skeleton underneath. Outside, the Utsuro groaned in pain, its flesh smoking as the camera burned its unprotected insides.

"This was our home!" Ryokan stared into the Malice's terrified eyes through the lens of the camera, _"and you are no longer welcome here!"_

On the third and final shot, the Malice's avatar burned away as light shined through the Utsuro's dissolving remains. Tottering unevenly, the monster uttered a final moan as it fell forward, depositing Ryokan in a heap as its remains melted into the ground. Spirits that had made up the Utsuro flaked off and scattered into the dark as the creature slid back and plummeted into the Hellish Abyss, taking the excised Malice with it.

"And stay out," Ryokan whispered. Alone in the ancient chamber, the old man continued to draw uneven breaths. Adrenaline still flowed through him, dulling pain from injuries that would be unbearable otherwise. His left leg was broken, it felt like his ribcage was shattered, there were gashes all over his body, an entire lung had been pulverized, he could barely see in front of himself...but he was _smiling_. Days of suffering had brought him here, but there was finally nothing standing between him and the end of his journey. There was only one thing left to do.

Ryokan pulled himself toward the edge of the Hellish Abyss, inch by inch, dragging a trail of blood and the Camera Obscura behind him.

_"Sae, if it hadn't been for me, you never would have been separated from Yae in the first place. I don't __think I ever told you I was sorry for that, for treating you as a tool instead of my daughter. I hope you can forgive me someday."_

Once there was no more ground to crawl over, Ryokan lifted the Camera Obscura up and threw it into the murky void in front of him. The spirits trapped inside the camera went with it, including Sae.

_"If you can hear me now, I offer my sacrifice in place of your own. Take my misery, and be at peace."_

Without hesitation, Ryokan pulled himself forward a little more, allowing his body to slip over the edge, and into the Hellish Abyss.

* * *

This chapter was originally intended to be the last one, but I had to split it into two parts due to length, so there's still more to come. On the bright side, the story is finally at the point where we just have elements of resolution and closure left, so I can safely say that the next chapter will be the final update. I know I've said that before, but it's not a false alarm this time.

I hope the conclusion will be uploaded before mid-september, when I go back to school, but I've failed my update times before, so no promises.

As always, reviews will be appreciated. See you all next time.


	34. Chapter 34: Sunrise

AN: Well, this is cause for happiness. It only took a few weeks to get the last chapters out, just in time for the new school semester to start.

Thanks to koryandrs, OnnaMusha, and The History Queen for reviewing the last chapter, as well as all of you who have stuck with the story up to this point. I hope you enjoy the conclusion to our journey.

* * *

Chapter 34: Sunrise

The next thing he knew, Ryokan's mind was being stirred awake by the sound of the wind rushing past him. It was the same wind that had been chilling Ryokan for days, but the other thing he noticed just then was that he couldn't feel it, or anything else. He could barely even tell that he was lying on solid ground – a flat, indecipherable plane that wasn't soft, hard, uneven, or rigid. It was as if his mind and body were detached from one another, and for a moment he feared to open his eyes, wondering if he would be able to see.

Carefully, his eyelids parted to the sight of darkness, realizing his considerations for a moment. Was this the underworld? It didn't seem like it: the void around him grew brighter as his eyes adjusted to it, revealing a dark, cloudy sky like the one that had engulfed the village after the Repentance.

Ryokan lied still for awhile, awash with a peculiar shift of reality that he didn't wish to complicate with movement. Wherever he was, Ryokan's physical pain was completely gone. Not just from his injuries, but from the exhaustion and stresses of age, too. The "old man" felt young again, but how? He had felt the wounds, and he remembered falling into the Hellish Abyss before everything went dark.

Ryokan's situation became a lot clearer when he looked down, checking to ensure that his body was still there. He was wearing a ceremonial white robe, and at first glance, everything underneath it seemed accounted for. Two arms, a torso, waistline intact, and two legs protruding from it.

Squinting in the dark, however, his chest tensed when he noticed that his feet were absent. Below the knee, both his clothes and the limbs under them faded into nothingness. At least everything else was visible, though.

Yes...the rest of it was just transparent.

Now Ryokan understood. "Dead," he said to himself, disappointed but easily accepting. He waved some of his limbs to test his movement, and became aware of more problems with his figure. For one, he wasn't breathing. Looking down at his diaphragm showed that it wasn't undulating up and down, and the rhythmic thump of a beating heart was absent in his ears as well. On the bright side, the leaking gashes, protruding bones, and other injuries that he had already noted didn't hurt anymore were gone as well. His chest was completely unblemished, as if nothing had ever threatened him.

Sitting up languidly, Ryokan assessed his surroundings more fully. He recognized the wooden flooring as part of Whisper Bridge, the extrusion of planks and railings that connected the shore of the river to Kurosawa House. His house...maybe some of it had survived. Turning his head hopefully, Ryokan frowned at what he saw. A twisted mess of charred wood and glowing embers frowned back at him. Everything was destroyed, deposited in an uneven heap on the ground save for a few stubborn pillars and bits of framework that poked up at the heavily smog-ridden sky. A keen enough nose could've sensed the smoke rising from miles away; Ryokan's lack of smell was beginning to annoy him. Then again, so was the ability to stare through his knees and see the bridge.

Ryokan managed to stand, despite the surreal impossibility of such a thing, and pondered what was holding him aloft. Frustrated, he raised his legs up, one by one, and stomped in place. His knees felt as if they were still burdened, straining to lift feet that weren't there, but when he brought them down, he didn't feel or hear anything contact the wood. They just stopped, as if an invisible force were holding him away from the safety of the ground. Staring down at his phantom limbs, the old man took a short walk up and down the bridge. He didn't remember ever feeling this light or moving so smoothly – he wasn't walking at all, he was floating!

There was probably a way to move without even using his legs, only doing so now because he couldn't comprehend any other way to animate himself. His stomach twisted a little as a memory pressed on him of the time he had fought Kanehira's spirit here. His old friend had sunken through the floor and levitated back up at will – could he do that too? There was no telling what variety of surprises the spiritual form could hold, but Ryokan couldn't bring himself to think that far ahead. Right now, he had to focus on the village in front of him, which posed greater curiosities.

With Ryokan's plan carried out to the fullest, what would happen next? Just by thinking clearly, Ryokan realized that he had been spared the insanity that had turned all the other villagers into ravening lunatics, and that was something to be happy about. His mind was safe, but what about the others? Scanning All Gods from where he stood didn't reveal any change in appearance to suggest that the curse had been evicted, but the only way to know for sure was to wait. If the village was finally free, the sun would have to rise sooner or later.

Sliding over to the edge of the bridge, Ryokan took a seat and stared out at the gently flowing river. Depending on when he'd been dumped here, the old man had either a few minutes or several hours to wait. It crossed his mind to set out looking for the spirits of his fellow villagers, or explore the foundations of his ruined house to see if anything had survived. Merely thinking about it made him ache, though; he'd had enough scurrying from place to place. For the first time in days, Ryokan had the luxury to simply wait, and he wanted to make use of it for as long as it took for something to happen. Even his mind was quiet as he stared down, examining his own reflection rippling in the murky fluid. It was just too bad he couldn't feel the wind on his face; that would have made this moment absolutely perfect.

Hours passed. Darkness reigned. Staring to the east for signs of daybreak wore on the old man, and he had almost given up when a voice broke the silence. A familiar voice.

"Nice view, isn't it?" the voice came from Ryokan's left. Turning hastily, he saw none other than Kanehira Tachibana sitting next to him, staring out at the river just as he had been doing a few seconds ago. In death, Ryokan had been reunited with his only true friend. He wasn't wearing the veil that normally covered the faces of village priests, and Ryokan could tell he wasn't the wraith he had been last time they saw each other. Even the painted hieroglyphs that usually lined his face weren't there anymore, leaving his friend's warm smile unobstructed. Like Ryokan, this man was free.

Turning his expression toward the sky, Kanehira pointed up. Ryokan followed his gaze, and saw something truly amazing. Above them both, the dark clouds that had hung over Ryokan and his village for so long were starting to vanish, drifting off to more distant skies. The sky, clearer than before, reflected shades of blue that grew lighter and lighter until Ryokan, leaning forward as if it brought him closer to the heavens, saw the first daylight pierce the treetops of Misono Hill.

Seeing that sunrise lifted 68 years of shame and misery from the old man's conscious. It felt like he had been born again, into an openhanded world where everything was as it should be.

"The very best," Ryokan answered Kanehira's question without looking away from the horizon. Nothing else was said for a couple more hours as the two weary friends watched the inspiring hues give way to the relative calm of normal daylight hours. The time was passing unusually quickly, and Ryokan wondered if his spirit was acclimating itself in preparation for centuries of unrest on Earth. So far, it looked like the Malice had been right about that much...the old man's soul was stuck here.

"Why are _you_ still here?" Ryokan wondered out loud, turning to Kanehira with an eyebrow raised.

"My wife died here," Kanehira answered, staring down into the murky waters that the drowned woman resided in. "I'm waiting to see her again. Aren't you waiting for your family too?"

"Waiting for them to have at me," Ryokan placed his arms on one of the bridge's horizontal beams and rested his head on them, frowning deeply. "After everything I've done, I doubt they'll be happy to see me."

"Maybe so," Kanehira said, doing a 180 take of the vista in front of them. "But I would be proud knowing my father, my wife, or my _friend_ had saved the village," the priest looked back at Ryokan, smiling garishly.

"I don't know about that," Ryokan didn't smile back. "Not much that I've done is something to be proud of."

"Ryokan," Kanehira's smile melted into an expression of admonishment, "you've paid your debt to this place's people. Try to be happy about that."

Looking up, Kanehira gave a furtive glance to something behind Ryokan. "Although, if you want to apologize, now might be the time."

For the first time, Ryokan became aware of a tall figure standing to his right. It was positioned just slightly behind him to avoid his gaze, but the old man could see a faint curtain of purple in his peripheral vision. Turning, his eyes widened as his wife, Kiyomi, greeted his vision.

"Hello, husband," Kiyomi fumed, towering over him. Ryokan rocketed up and backpedaled, nearly tripping over Kanehira while his mind struggled to process the new arrival. Where did she come from?! He entertained the idea that she had suddenly appeared there, but it was just as possible that she had simply walked up to him. These ethereal beings were even harder to spot with light obscuring them, and Ryokan had been distracted with the sunrise.

"Kiy..." Ryokan stopped when Kiyomi slapped him across the face with one of her hands. The old man's head recoiled from the blow; to his surprise, it really stung, and not just in the embarrassing sense. Ryokan couldn't resist a small smile, pleased to find he still had the sense of touch, so long as another spirit was responsible. The smile infuriated Kiyomi, however, who slapped him again, scalding his other cheek.

"I'm sorry," Ryokan lowered his head, his shame not allowing him more fluent speech, "for everything."

_"Sorry?!,"_ the seething woman started, glaring at her cowed husband, "you imprisoned me in a cellar, drove one of our daughters away, _killed_ the other, and locked _him_ in a storehouse," Kiyomi pointed an accusing finger at Itsuki, who was walking down the shore to the bridge with his siblings, Mutsuki and Chitose, in tow.

"I should throw you into the river!" Kiyomi shouted. A few seconds passed as Ryokan closed his eyes, awaiting punishment that never came. When he opened them again, Kiyomi's look had softened and become calm. "But...you did sacrifice yourself to save us...so I guess I can forgive you."

Kiyomi turned away from her husband and took an uncomfortably distant seat on the bridge, far out of his arm's reach. Forgiveness or not, she was rightfully angry with him. Ryokan decided to give her the space she needed and disregarded her further, squinting discerningly at the water beneath him. A mop of long, black hair belonging to Kanehira's wife was becoming visible above the surface. Rising until she hovered out of the water, the ethereal women floated toward the bridge and took her place alongside Kanehira and their mutual children. Ryokan watched as the two lovers exchanged heartfelt greetings, and made lip contact for the first time in years. Curious, the old man turned toward his own wife expectantly.

"Don't even think about it," Kiyomi snorted derisively. Ryokan chuckled a bit and looked toward what remained of his house, but a bereft frown retook his face quickly. Despite considerable reasons to rejoice, Ryokan was troubled by the incompleteness of the occasion. Sae Kurosawa, the beloved daughter whose fate Ryokan most feared, was still missing, and there was no sign of her form shifting in the wreckage of his house.

Resting no longer, Ryokan stood and turned toward Kurosawa manor. Thinking of the last places where she had been alive drew his eye to the ritual chamber at the far end of the house. Unlike the rest, it was still standing, charred but visible on the horizon.

"Ryokan?" Itsuki asked curiously. The others were staring at him too, wondering what he was up to.

"Sae is in there somewhere," Ryokan replied. "I'm going to find her."

"I'm coming with you," Itsuki replied, standing up and moving to Ryokan's side. Kiyomi did the same, eager to see her daughter again.

The old man remained silent and unmoving for a couple of seconds, haunted by the way he had treated Sae when both of them were alive. "No," he ultimately said, walking a few paces forward and turning to obstruct their path, "this is something that I need to do alone."

Kiyomi opened her mouth to protest, but her rebuttal caught in her throat as she second-guessed herself. Ryokan was the one who had hurt Sae, not her, and she knew he needed to be the one to talk to her. Reluctantly, Kiyomi stepped back and nodded solemnly, and Itsuki followed suit.

"I'll bring her back when I find her," Ryokan uttered in earnest. Turning around, the old man set off down the bridge toward his house.

* * *

Ryokan found to his amusement that navigating rubble and uneven terrain was much easier in the afterlife. It brought him great glee as he floated straight through fallen beams and smoldering fires on his path to the shrine – as if he were taking revenge against the Earth itself by ignoring its obstacles. Overhead, Ryokan caught sight of a few bits of ethereal starlight ascending toward the sky – the first of many, shepherded by Crimson Butterflies, which glided up with them. The villagers were beginning their journey to the afterlife. Ryokan wondered if Sae was among them, if he was wasting his time looking for her.

That wouldn't stop him from trying. Even if he didn't find her here, he would search the entire village up and down, just to be sure. Maybe the entire world...

Ryokan floated along the path to the altar room, staring glumly at the once beautiful row of plants that had been burned down to their desiccated stalks by the fire. The entrance to the altar had been burned open, as had several other spots in the walls and ceiling that Ryokan noticed when he stepped inside. Rimmed by black soot, the holes were large enough to let sunlight shine through, illuminating the room and the specks of dust and debris that floated inside it. Ryokan had expected to hear the building creaking unsteadily, so it calmed his nerves to find that everything was quiet enough for him to hear his own kimono ruffling with his movements. There was no wind blowing against the shrine's walls, and Ryokan didn't have any feet to touch the ground – maybe there was even hope that it would be here long enough for someone to see it, and know the gruesome truth of why people had lived here. A memory formed of Mio and Mayu, the two girls that Ryokan had sensed while the village had still been under the influence of the curse. Now that it was gone, they would be free to live their lives, never being trapped here. If only Sae and Yae could've had that.

Ryokan's eyes fell on the back of the room, still intact and shrouded in relative darkness, where Sae's shimmering form rested. She was staring at the doorway, sitting indecisively with her back to him as though she had forgotten why she was there. Steeling himself for what would happen, Ryokan sucked in a breath, even though his dead lungs didn't need it.

_"Sae...,"_ Ryokan's voice was barely a whisper, but Sae still took notice, turning to regard him. Her face bore a bewildered look for a moment, but her eyes lit up as she remembered who he was.

_"...dad?"_ she replied. Ryokan gazed into her eyes, a regretful frown on his face. He had wondered what he could possibly say to her that would express his remorse adequately, but Sae acted before he had a chance. Getting up, Sae first walked, then ran toward him, tackling him with a hug that knocked him back a few steps. Hunching down a little to be on the same level as her, Ryokan reciprocated the motion as Sae sobbed into his chest.

"I tried to kill you," Sae cried.

"And I _succeeded_ in killing you," Ryokan lamented. He had expected Sae to rebuke his past actions, just as Yae had done back when there was still a chance to avoid this fate. It felt worse to see that Sae still blamed herself for everything that had happened, but at least it showed recollection of the past.

Sae lifted her head and made eye contact with her father. "I'm sorry..."

"No, I'm the one who's sorry," Ryokan interrupted hastily, almost too eager to overwrite her apology. "I was so obsessed with being a good Ceremony Master...so obsessed with upholding my father's tradition...that I was willing to throw you and Yae away to do it. Nothing should be worth that."

Hating her past repression and lack of assertiveness, Sae wouldn't let this argument go and shot back. "But I'm the one who couldn't let Yae go. We could've had a great life...out there," Sae stared through the large hole she had made during their previous fight, exposing the forest beyond the village, "or right here, just like you. Either way, my lack of trust hurt so many people."

"Well, you had _me_ as a role model," Ryokan uttered in scorn for his own betrayals. "I guess we both learned something, then," the old man smiled down at his daughter, who smiled back. Through her ghostly body, he watched as illuminated specks of ash drifted down from the ceiling, contrasting the view as he looked up, seeing more and more ascending spirits through the roof's holes.

"I just wish we could've learned sooner."

Ryokan looked back down to see that Sae's expression had become blank, an idle stare piercing through his chest.

"What's wrong?"

"I feel...strange," Sae uttered softly, her eyes turning toward the ceiling. "I can't explain it...it's like I'm being pulled into someone else's dream."

Ryokan felt a pang in his chest as he looked back up at the sky, this time with frustration. "We can't stay here much longer," he said, looking back down at the shrine. To his dismay, the old man felt no such sensation himself, confirming the suspicion that the heavens were beyond him. "Well, you can't, anyway."

Before the curious girl had a chance to ask Ryokan what he meant by that, she found herself being pulled toward the same doorway Ryokan had entered through. "Come on, let's get you back to your mother."

* * *

Ryokan returned to the bridge with Sae in tow, relieved to see that his compatriots were still there. Especially Itsuki and Kiyomi, whom Sae would be happiest to see. Beaming with joy, she embraced her mother first, laughing with catharsis as Kiyomi enfolded her in her arms. It wasn't any different than Ryokan had pictured it being – a child and mother reunited, bereft of the guilt that had punctuated their own meeting mere minutes ago. Once she moved on to Itsuki, however, shyness and unresolved longing weighed Sae down, forcing a formal tone on what should have been personal.

Furrowing his brow irritably, Ryokan strided toward the two, stopping their exchange with his imposing presence. Before disaster struck the village, he had been aware of Sae's feelings for the white-haired boy, unrequited as far as he knew. Ryokan knew he couldn't follow where they were going, so someone else would have to be there for her, guiding her in the afterlife.

"You know, Sae," Ryokan leaned casually against one of the bridge's railings, his arms folded across his chest, "Even after the way I treated him, your friend there helped me save this village."

"Really?" Sae turned her surprised gaze toward Itsuki, who nodded subtly without smiling.

"Yes, he did. Helped me find the path to salvation, in more ways than one. He did it to save _you_." Ryokan shot a friendly smile toward Itsuki, but the socially awkward stare that reflected back told him that more prodding was needed.

"He must really care about you..._right_?!" Ryokan uttered heavily, not even caring to mask his wishes for the two of them. Getting the message at last, Itsuki took the chance to move a little closer to Sae, his kimono brushing against hers. Blushing furiously, Sae found herself unable to make a move of her own, but Ryokan had a feeling that everything would work out between them, in the next life.

Standing in back of the small group, Kanehira focused his gaze up as a long, howling wind blew toward the skies. A feeling of misplacement robbed him of his focus, just as it had done to Sae.

"I think our time has come," he said, looking to Ryokan for what he expected to be an agreeing nod. Instead, Kanehira sensed trouble; the remark had wiped any trace of optimism from his friend's face. Ryokan took a few steps back to signify the news he was about to give.

"Yes, it has. For the rest of you."

Kanehira and the others turned toward him as they tried to decipher his meaning. Stopping a few meters from the rest of the group, Ryokan shook his head glumly and closed his eyes – he anticipated the goodbye being moving enough that he didn't want to risk aggravating it with eye contact.

"Ending this curse cost me more than just my life," Ryokan chose his words cautiously, trying to balance truth with the need not to make Sae feel guilty. There was no hope of stopping the simple horror of such news, however. Sae stumbled back a few paces, fixated on Ryokan as if he would disappear if she looked away for so much as a second. Kanehira bowed his head in mourning as he worked out the news, and Kiyomi gasped as she realized that this was the last time she would ever see him. Even Mutsuki and Chitose, the group's least cognizant members, felt their spirits dashed by the announcement.

Ryokan shifted his weight uneasily in the following silence, as Sae, drained by the news, sat down and bore her brow with one of her hands. A couple tears squeezed out beneath his heavy eyelids as he started to comprehend what a life without company would truly be like. The old man tried his best to remain strong, however, for Sae's sake. Walking forward, he knelt down with her.

"Sae," Ryokan placed a hand on her shoulder, "do you remember when you and Yae were little? I used to tell bedtime stories back then, stories about spirits like the Yuki-Onna. She was a cursed spirit, trapped on Earth like me, yet she was able to marry a mortal man and bring joy to his life. They're the kinds of stories that we could only hope were true, and now I have the chance to write one of my own. To bring salvation from beyond the grave, to help people in ways that I never could before. That never would have been possible without the lessons you and the others taught me. Don't be ashamed of that, be happy about it."

Ryokan still had doubts of his own on such a broad promise. It assumed that he would be able to leave the village himself, which the other spirits hadn't been able to do so far. He wasn't sure how he would be able to interact with a world that wasn't aware of his presence, but the spirit world held secrets that he couldn't even imagine. At the very least, he could perform one final act of kindness for his family, recovering the only person that he had failed to help already. The one that had been out of his reach until now: Sae's sister, Yae.

"You'll be okay without me," Ryokan said in a voice that was encouraging but cracked by sorrow, weeping as he hugged Sae for the last time. "You're surrounded by people who care about you. You _will_ see Yae again...I promise."

Sae placed her arms around him and closed her eyes, comforting herself with ruminations of where Ryokan's heroism would lead him. She couldn't help but wonder where Yae was or how her father planned to help her, but asking would just spoil the moment. Whatever he planned to do, he had all the time in the world to do it.

Kiyomi joined the hug, holding her family close as if keeping a tight enough grip would prevent the inevitable separation. Behind them, however, Ryokan took notice of the increasingly baritone gust of wind, stirring cherry blossom petals from underneath the trees they had fallen from, carrying them into the sky. The Ceremony Master broke the embrace and turned around just in time to see Kanehira clasp his hands together and bow, his goodbye to his friend.

"Don't forget about us," Kanehira whispered as his body began to disintegrate. From the bottom up, he dissolved into glistening motes of light, his warm smile remaining visible until his face was at last consumed.

"We won't forget about you," Kiyomi added, her pale form ebbing away in the same manner. Borne by the divine wind, each collection of remnants swirled into a sphere of light as they were lifted toward their unseen destination.

Ryokan was lost for words as he stepped back, choking down sobs and smiling with adoration as Itsuki and his two siblings followed.

Sae smiled warmly as the last traces of her disappeared as well. "Go, dad. Start a legend."

Both honored and bemused by these final words, Ryokan remained captivated by the retreating spheres of light, watching with tears of joy obscuring his vision until the howling winds had died down, and the very last orb of light had disappeared from view.

* * *

_May 20, 1887_

That was the date on Ryokan's mind as the tenacious spirit stood at the Torii gate atop Misono Hill, marking the village's exit. Seemingly innocuous, it was the impending date that Ryokan remembered from the diary he had glimpsed in a vision – the one written by Ryozo Munakata. It was the date by which Ryokan knew he and Yae would be living in the Himuro Mansion, provoking Kirie's curse and sealing their fate. The old man had to find his way there before they could get settled in.

The current year was 1874, giving him about 13 years to find Yae and stop Kirie from claiming another victim. Plenty of time for a living man to find Himuro Mansion on a map or ask for directions, but what about someone who had neither luxury? Ryokan didn't have Himuro's location memorized. Yae could be anywhere in Japan, and once he found her, he still needed a way to talk to her.

Ryokan wasn't prepared to think that far ahead; for now, he only wanted to leave this place. Gathering vigor, Ryokan floated forward and passed under the dark sliver of shade beneath the Torii gate, crossing through it without incident. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ryokan surveyed the forest backcountry that lay ahead of him. Towering trees were illuminated in bright green by balmy rays from the newly restored sun, and bramble patches sat below him, their thorns unable to pierce his impalpable flesh. It was a good beginning for the journey, one that the ex-Ceremony Master was grateful for.

As Ryokan wandered into the forest beyond, a final Crimson Butterfly watched from a nearby branch. Only when it was confident that its former brother had seen the last of All Gods Village did it finally depart into the skies beyond.

* * *

AN: Conclusion was a lot longer than I expected, so sorry if this chapter seemed to drag on too long.

This ending is the reason I had to mark the story as a slight AU in the description. It's a reality where the actual events of Fatal Frame 2 cease to exist because of Ryokan's different actions. I hope this didn't bother all of you too much; I tried to keep most of the story within canon, but wanted enough space to add my own spin on things.

All that's left now is the epilogue, which wraps the story up and answers whatever questions are still unsolved. It's already posted, so you're free to continue whenever you want. See you then.


	35. Epilogue: Lost in Time

AN: To tell the truth, I wasn't sure if this story needed an epilogue or not, since some people like ambiguous endings where they're left to wonder what happened to the main character after the story's events concluded. Your satisfaction with this final chapter may vary depending on how you normally like stories to end, but I'm providing it for those of us who prefer to see loose ends tied up. Hope you enjoy it.

* * *

Epilogue: Lost in Time

Modern Japan passed before Ryokan's eyes as he trekked north toward his destination in the Himuro mountains. It was a time of upheaval, an era characterized by the removal of the feudal system that Ryokan had once known and expected from the people surrounding his former village. Seemed he wasn't the only one who could embrace change. Unfortunately, the political tremors also sowed fear that led people to adorn their businesses and homes with Shinto talismans that Ryokan, being a cursed spirit, could not cross. Every time he neared one, his vision would blur, his legs tensing to prevent him from stepping forward as a debilitating sickness crippled his body and mind. Trying to charge past them only made the pain worse; to him, the air around these talismans was blisteringly hot.

Begrudging the people of Japan their privacy, Ryokan was forced to walk around them, adding extra miles of length to his long odyssey. A minor setback for someone who still had over a decade to reach Himuro Mansion, which the dead man finally did in the winter of 1876. He had followed the legends overheard from farmers in the region, leading him to a lonely building whose architecture, wards, and sheer size were unmistakable. This place had a single goal: fighting the same Malice that Ryokan had banished from his own village. Ryokan entered the ancient edifice proudly and took up a station in the building's foyer room. He was ready to warn anyone who tried to live here, confident that the Malice had been destroyed for good in the battle that concluded so many years ago.

This was a fatal mistake. What Ryokan interpreted as the Malice's permanent end had merely been its banishment from one part of the world with the sealing of the Hellish Abyss. It was alive and well here, and it had been watching the mansion's entrance for him, knowing that he would eventually arrive on his own. It knew why he had come, having been the one who warned him about Yae's demise in the first place, and stopping him from saving her would be the perfect revenge.

Months passed without incident as the Malice bided its time, watching silently as Ryokan kept his eyes glued to the double doors leading into the building. Eager to help others, he was unprepared to defend himself when Kirie Himuro, the indomitable wraith that patrolled the halls of the manor, ambushed him on a cold night in December 1877. Ryokan found out the hard way that battling hostile spirits was much harder without the Camera Obscura in hand; he was no match for Kirie's strength. Seized by the many arms that protruded from her back, she dragged him shouting and cursing down to the Hell Gate at the bottom of the shrine. The moment Kirie reached the ominous stone doors leading into the void that the Malice called home, she threw him inside, sealing the entrance behind him.

The Malice, however, had _really_ begun to hate Ryokan after its defeat in All Gods, and keeping him imprisoned with it wasn't satisfying enough. Instead, the Malice tore open the entrance to another shrine and flung him back out, offering no explanation as it set him free.

Feeling naively hopeful for a moment, Ryokan examined his new surroundings, not minding the softly humming portal he had been thrown out of. Hieroglyphs adorned the walls, remnants of a language that Ryokan didn't recognize. Pillars and towering ceilings were constructed from a type of limestone that he had never seen before. Everywhere he looked, a thick layer of desert sand covered the ground. Not even the deities depicted on the walls were familiar: anthropomorphous beings with the heads of animals. That is, until Ryokan finally found one that he _did_ recognize – a beautiful woman with no animal head and an ornate crown shaped like a throne. He remembered it from the beginning of his tenure as Ceremony Master, when an outsider book was confiscated from a villager and ended up in his library. He remembered the being's name...

_"Isis,"_ Ryokan uttered with horror as a fresh sense of urgency gripped his body. In the mere minutes it had taken for the Malice to regurgitate Ryokan from the depths of Hell, it had transported him to a temple lost in the remote deserts of Egypt, _thousands of miles_ from home. Stricken with panic, Ryokan tried to re-enter the demonic doorway only to find that it had closed behind him. The mission that had seemed reasonable was now hopeless, lost more than a continent away from him.

Spurred on by his sleepless nature, Ryokan refused to give up and leave Yae in peril. Each morning, he followed the rising sun and trekked East, changing direction only when a body of water impeded his progress. The empty desert gave way to strange cities and landscapes that no villager had ever seen before, but Ryokan pressed on, determined to find his daughter again. In the interim, Yae grew up under Ryozo's care, never knowing what became of her father.

Months passed...years..._decades_. Ryokan never gave up, walking farther and farther east with each passing day, never resting and always moving. History passed before his eyes as societies and technologies changed around him, but he didn't explore them as much as he would've liked to. He was too weary to care about anything except his simple objective: _keep walking...keep moving east...before it's too late_. Unfortunately, the target year of 1887 came and went while Ryokan was still navigating the mountains of China. Yae and Ryozo, now married with a young child, moved into Himuro Mansion just as Ryokan had been foretold. Surrounded by malevolent spirits that she was only slightly aware of, Yae's sixth sense drove her mad. Eventually, one of the spirits grew bold, and three years after they moved in, Yae's daughter was dragged away by unseen assailants, never to be heard from again. It was the final straw for a person whose life had never gone right, and the broken woman took her own life not long after.

Against the odds, Ryokan made it back to Japan in the winter of 1904, but returning to Himuro Mansion made him long to be whisked away again. He found Yae's unresponsive spirit hanging from a cherry blossom tree, rimmed by a banal, black sky in the house's exterior atrium. Ryozo was nowhere to be found – no one was. He had returned to find the place as empty and isolated as his own village had once been, this time without the hope of ever saving it.

The Malice had taken its revenge; Ryokan had failed.

* * *

Faced with the loss of his goal, Ryokan came to understand that he couldn't leave Yae behind, even as she hung from a rope tied by her own hand. He spent the first few days mourning in one of the mansion's remotest rooms, fearful of attacks from the Malice and its apparent servant, Kirie. Days turned to weeks, and when nothing came for the dead man, he began to think that nothing was going to. Maybe the Malice hadn't expected him to make it back here and wasn't looking for him, or maybe it was just satisfied keeping him trapped here, as he grieved over the loss of his last living relative.

Entire years went by as Ryokan languished in this gilded cage, helpless to do anything except watch over his daughter's spirit. He would construct methods to keep himself occupied. He wandered the property, familiarizing himself with every last room and hallway above ground level. He loitered in the house's library, reading from the pages of books that had been left open on the ground. He expanded upon the abilities given to him by spirithood, learning to walk through walls and turn himself invisible. They came in little handy in a place abandoned by the living, but it was all Ryokan could do while he was unable to fight the Himuro curse directly. Doing that would require the ability to interact with the physical world, and Ryokan sorely lacked that in his current form. He would also have to explore the unhallowed shrines beneath the mansion proper, risking dangerous reprisals from the Malice that resided there. Without a Camera Obscura and a pair of living hands to work it, failure was an inevitable conclusion.

Years turned to decades as Ryokan sat beneath the cherry blossom tree that Yae had hung herself from. It made him feel a little less bitter to be near her. Most of the other spirits, who didn't recognize Ryokan from their previous lives, simply avoided him as they remained trapped in the routines they had been performing on the day of their failed sacrifice. Kirie was the only phantom that posed any threat, and she was easy enough to hide from when he heard the sound of her cries growing louder. He would watch them curiously, analyzing their mannerisms to glean details about how people had lived in this commune.

Occasionally, Ryokan's loneliness would be interrupted when new people tried to move into the mansion, but these times were always short-lived and very stressful for him. He knew what fate would await visitors if they stayed in the Himuro manor, so he would always run to them and shout at them to leave. Having weak sixth senses, however, they never saw or heard him, no matter how loudly he screamed. It wasn't until Kirie appeared before them and dragged them to their deaths that they finally learned of their mistake. The pain of never being able to help them took its toll on Ryokan, and after a few decades, he stopped trying altogether.

This pattern continued throughout the 20th century, the solitude pushing him to the brink of madness. It wasn't until October 3rd, 1986, that Ryokan was finally given a reason to rejoice. The evening started like any other, with Ryokan hiding from Kirie in the mansion's foyer room as she made her rounds in the house's atrium. While he was watching for her, however, Ryokan heard the lock on the entryway click as a new visitor arrived on the site. He watched the door curiously, staying in the shadows for fear of Kirie, but he entertained no aspirations of helping the poor soul.

A fan of moonlight spread itself across the dusty floor as a girl became visible, inspecting the foyer's state of disrepair with hesitation. From his position in the shadows, Ryokan examined the girl and was instantly taken aback by what he saw. She was young, as young as his own daughters had been, with light brown hair and brown, somber eyes. Despite the cold, her clothing was notably light: an unimposing white shirt with a red collar, a short brown skirt, and black boots. The getup was so casual that she probably would've been punished for it in his more conservative age. No sign of luggage burdened her form; she definitely had no plans to stay here, although that would probably change if she made the fatal mistake of stepping inside.

The girl stepped into the foyer and closed the double doors behind her, prompting Ryokan to utter a depressed sigh. He refused to endure the heartbreak of another person's demise and only wanted to wish her luck, whispering the phrase "be safe" as she started to walk past him.

Instantly, the girl jumped and spun around, frozen with fear at the words that Ryokan realized she must be cognizant of. His dull eyes widened with surprise as he struggled to comprehend her reaction.

"You can hear me?!" he asked eagerly, jumping into full view too quickly for the girl's frayed nerves to handle. She panicked, screaming as she flung herself away from him. It was too good to be true; after all this time, another person who could _see_ him!

"Wait, come back, I can help you!" Ryokan called as Miku disappeared through the nearest door. He pursued her and wound up in the house's tattered entryway. Fortune favored him as the visitor's attempt to flee was stopped by a locked door. From across the hallway, this tiny human turned to face him, shuddering at his presence.

Ryokan hesitated to approach her and said nothing for several minutes, allowing them both a much needed chance to calm down. The girl's foggy exhalations came less rapidly as she started to realize that he didn't want to hurt her. It had been so long since he had been able to talk to anyone, though, that he found himself lacking the social confidence to speak. He buried himself in thought, trying to re-establish the art of conversation in his mind while the girl stared at him, unwilling to make the first move.

"I'm sorry if I frightened you," he uttered nervously, trying to show her some civility. "It's just been a long time since I had someone else to talk to. A very, _very_ long time."

To his relief, the girl found humanity in Ryokan's admission of loneliness and started focusing on him as a person rather than a threatening force. She took a few nervous steps toward him and spoke back, starting small. "My name is Miku Hinasaki. What's yours?"

"Kurosawa. Ryokan Kurosawa," the former Ceremony Master replied. Now that he had her attention, he needed to do something with it. He considered merely telling her to turn around and leave this place, but before he could, he squinted down the narrow hallway and spotted something unusual.

Ryokan walked toward Miku, who moved aside to allow him room next to her. Lying on the ground and covered in a suspiciously thin layer of dust were a notebook with the name "Mafuyu" written on the front, and an oddly familiar-looking camera. Ryokan leaned down and passed his ghostly hand through it. With a spark in his mind, the memories of the Repentance in All Gods village, and everything that came after it, were clear in his memory again. Every aspect of this machine was familiar to him, the size, color, ornate symbols, and lens.

_"It's a Camera Obscura,"_ a state of bliss overcame Ryokan as he uttered the words. Imagine his luck, that the very device he needed to finally help his daughter escape this place had been left here, under his nose. It couldn't have been here long; he had explored these halls dozens of times before without seeing it. No, this camera had been left here recently, by this "Mafuyu" person – a person that Ryokan in his sleepless vigilance didn't remember seeing. Whoever he was, the Himuro curse had claimed him within hours of his arrival.

"Hey, that's my brother's diary!" Miku exclaimed, ignoring the camera in favor of the leather-bound book. Ryokan was starting to piece this girl together.

"Mafuyu is important to you, isn't he?," Ryokan asked. "That's why you came here, to find him and bring him home."

"My brother," Miku nodded solemnly, turning her gaze from the diary to Ryokan. "Ever since our mother died, he's been the only family I had left. I have to find him, before it's too late."

"I understand," Ryokan nodded, his thoughts wandering inexorably to Yae's fate. "I'm looking for someone as well. My daughter, a person that I was never able to help...until now."

Deciding that it was time to lay his cards down, Ryokan shook his head side to side a few times to resist his exhaustion and turned toward his new friend with a less casual expression. "Miku, I know that we just met each other, but both of us have lost something in this terrible place, and neither of us have the skills to recover them alone. This place is infested with the victims of a failed ritual, and most of them aren't as nice as I am. _But..._" Ryokan gestured toward the Camera Obscura, which Miku took notice of, "that machine is our ticket to fighting our way through this place, and you're the only one who can use it. If you help me break the curse that trapped them here, we can both be with our loved ones again."

Miku knelt down and picked up the camera, not taking her gaze off of Ryokan. She didn't even wait for him to formally ask before she answered his request for help by nodding her head firmly. Ryokan himself, however, was haunted by the idea of an innocent child risking her life _and_ afterlife for his mistakes. It wasn't fair to ask that of her, and she needed to know the risks, even though she had her own reason for being here.

"It will be dangerous," Ryokan cautioned. "Once we press deeper into the mansion, there will be no turning back. Are you _sure_ you're up to this?" he asked softly, placing a hand on her shoulder.

The ethereal limb chilled her on contact, causing goosebumps to rise on her arms. Ryokan gasped as he remembered the pain he had felt in life when other spirits grasped him. Without their desire to kill, however, the touch did nothing but discomfort her a little, and when Ryokan tried to pull his arm away, Miku caught it.

"For my brother," Miku shook Ryokan's hand to signify a partnership, "and your daughter."

Ryokan smiled proudly and placed his hands underneath Miku's, lifting them up until the Camera Obscura's viewfinder was in the proper position. Miku smiled back as she tucked the camera securely under her arm.

"We'd better get going," Miku said, walking toward the door that led into the rest of the mansion. "The sooner we find Mafuyu and Yae, the sooner we can get out of here."

Feeling strangely optimistic about their chances, Ryokan followed Miku further into Himuro manor, hopeful for the first time in a century that a brighter future lay ahead of him.

_The End_

* * *

AN: Despite what it may look like, this epilogue isn't really setting up a sequel. The ending is basically the start of Fatal Frame 1, and we already know it ends with Miku defeating the curse and freeing the spirits, which would include both Yae and Ryokan.

Thanks again to everyone who stayed with the story and put up with the lengthy delays in updating. For those of you who found my writing good enough to want more, there's an update on my profile about what I plan to do for my next story, and when it will start to be posted.

I'd love to hear how you all thought the story turned out, so be sure to drop a review if you can. Goodbye, everyone, it's been a pleasure.


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